Trust Your Senses
by film princess
Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.
1. The New Mission

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to my amazing friend, scifigeek22! Hope you enjoy it, hun!

Max pounded hard on Alec's door, hoping the suave transgenic was home and not out conquering the female population. She had an urgent matter to discuss with him and time was of the essence. "Alec? You in there? Open up!"

Tilting her ear towards the door, she was able to pick up on a familiar, though oddly rough and husky sounding, voice grumbling from the other side. "Alright, alright… I'm comin'!"

She stood back as he unbolted the lock and pulled the door open. Alec squinted down at her, raising a hand to shield his sensitive eyes from the assault of the hallway lights. He checked the hallway to the left and right to make sure they were alone before settling his gaze on the anxious brunette before him. "Somethin' I can do for you, Max?"

Max was temporarily startled by Alec's disheveled appearance. He was wearing nothing but baggy gray sweatpants and his hair was tousled like she had just woken him up. A quick glance around him proved that the entire apartment was shrouded in darkness.

Considering it was prime time for the young X-5 to be out tom-catting at Crash, she was more than a little surprised to find him already catching some shut eye. Unless…

"If you've got company in there, just say so and I'll…"

Alec rolled his eyes, then grimaced when the action made his head pound even harder. He leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms over his bare chest as he attempted to pass off the wince as nothing more than indignation at her assumption. "No one else is here, Max. Contrary to common belief, I _am_ capable of spending the night alone."

Max frowned, not willing to let him get away with the cover up so easily. She gave him a more critical once over, trying to pick up on any obvious injuries that the X-5 may have sustained recently.

"What's wrong with you? You look like death," she commented before she could stop herself. It was true; Alec was far from his healthy, happy-get-lucky self tonight.

Alec's lips quirked up in a small smirk. "Aww, Maxie… That's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Max flinched inwardly as she realized that statement could very well be true. She did tend to be a bit harsh on him, but in all fairness the smart ass usually deserved it.

"Seriously, Alec. If you're out of commission, I can go find someone else," she prodded.

Alec straightened immediately, not wanting to appear weak in her eyes, even for a second. "I'm fine, Max. Just a headache is all. What do you need?"

Ignoring his question, she countered with one of her own. "Have you been taking your tryptophan?"

He shook his head in denial. "It's got nothin' to do with that."

"Care to elaborate?" The demand in her voice made it clear she wasn't asking so much as _telling_ him to report. He was never one for orders though and figured she should get used to his insubordination sooner rather than later.

"Not really," he replied, locking gazes with her defiantly. When she fastened her hands on her hips and gave him _that _look though, it took everything he had not to roll his eyes again. She was as stubborn as he was. "I told you, it's just a headache. They happen ya know. It'll be gone in a few hours."

She seemed far from convinced but, considering she had little choice in the matter, she decided to let it go for now. "Fine. In the meantime, Logan received a message twenty minutes ago and I think it's worth checking out."

"Oh yeah?" Alec raised an eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"Cause it was from Lydecker," Max stated matter-of-factly.

Alec pursed his lips and frowned in confusion. "Wait, _the _Lydecker? The one who _died_ a few months back in a car wreck?"

"His body was never found, Alec. I think he escaped and has been laying low."

"So why break the vow of silence now?"

"Turns out he has some info on the breeding cult he wants to share."

"And he can't just email it to our friendly cyber hacker because…?"

"Because he doesn't want to risk it being intercepted and traced back to his location. They already tried to kill him once for this info, he's not going to risk it happening again."

Max held her breath as Alec massaged the back of his neck absently in thought. When he looked back down at her, she could tell he had made his decision. "Okay, I'll play along. Where's the meet?"

She tried not to let the relief show on her face in case it gave him an even bigger head. "There was an encrypted attachment that Logan is working on now. I think it's a set of coordinates. Logan said he should have it decoded by the time we get back to his place. So you comin' or what?" Of course, she already knew the answer to that question.

"Yeah. But can I get dressed first?"

"Make it fast. Patience has never been one of Lydecker's virtues."

Alec snorted his agreement as he turned his back to Max and made his way towards the bedroom to find a clean shirt and a pair of jeans.

Less than five minutes later, Alec was clinging to Max's back as they tore through the streets of Seattle on her motorcycle. Though it was a relatively warm night, she could feel his body trembling where it rested against hers, regardless of the heavy leather jacket he was clad in.

Not wanting to shout over the roar of the engine, she decided to wait until they arrived at Logan's to confront her fellow X-5 on his health once again. Clearly, something was not right.

By the time she slid off the bike and turned to face Alec, he had gone very pale and the pain was evident in his squinted eyes.

"Alec, if you're not up for this mission, tell me now."

He shrugged deeper into his jacket, hoping to protect himself from the chills wracking his body as well as from Max's intense scrutiny. "I've got your back, Max. Just waiting for the painkillers to kick in. I'll be fine."

She reached up to feel his forehead but he balked and caught her wrist inches from his face. "Told you I'm fine," he insisted before releasing her.

Max drew her hand back with a scowl. "Must you always be so difficult?"

He forced a smirk to try and reassure his companion. "Just part of my charm, Maxie."

"Well ass-kickin' is part of mine, and if you screw this up because you're too stubborn to admit you're sick, then you're gonna face the wrath of my charm pretty damn quickly, understood?"

"Sir, yes, sir…" He responded with a mock salute. Max strode past him with a frustrated huff and led the way into Logan's apartment. Alec took a deep breath to steady himself before following after her.

"Logan? We're here!" Max called out as she headed towards the computer room to find him.

"Hey, Max… Excellent timing. I've just about got it," Logan answered distractedly without looking up. He continued typing furiously on his keyboard. "And… done! You were right, he did send coordinates."

Keeping a safe distance from Eyes Only to avoid accidentally infecting him, Max allowed her vision to zoom in on the tiny numbers in the center of Logan's screen. "Can we get a visual on the location?"

"Just a sec…" Logan's fingers danced across the keys once again until another window popped up with a live image of a large warehouse. "I've seen this place before. It's in sector 8. It used to be a lucrative telecommunications factory until the Pulse hit and rendered their products useless."

"And now good ol' Deck is usin' the place as his very own bed and breakfast," Alec supplied, having heard the entire conversation from just outside of the doorway.

Logan glanced around. "Hey, Alec." He frowned as he took in the X-5's pallor. "Rough night?"

Alec shrugged casually. "I've had worse," he answered honestly. He tried to ignore the sheen of sweat that was now coating his body. _Is it hot in here, or is it just me? _He shifted uncomfortably as his clothes seemed to cling to his skin irritatingly.

Max launched into a long speech about how it was obvious something was wrong with Alec and if he would just stop being so stubborn and tell them what was going on, maybe there was something they could do for him.

Alec tried to focus on the words coming out of her mouth but after a while, her voice was outmatched by a loud ringing in his ears. He shook his head, then blinked rapidly as his vision started to tunnel.

Max was still mid-rant when she shot an ugly look at him and noticed he wasn't taking in a word she was saying. "Alec? Hey!"

Alec swayed dangerously on the spot as he tried to orient himself, his right hand latching onto the doorframe as a grounding point. He could see Max walking towards him, looking concerned now rather than irate, but when he blinked again, he was no longer seeing Max or Logan's apartment.

_A quick visual of a hospital-like lab room flashed in front of him, and instead of a small brunette heading his way, he saw a masked doctor approaching him in full scrubs._

_He blinked again, and while he saw Max now, she was standing in the middle of what appeared to be a large warehouse, surrounded by armed soldiers. "Where's Lydecker?" she ground out to someone out of his visual range. _

_Three of the men stepped forward with cattle prods and while Max attempted to put up a good fight, it wasn't long before Alec felt the fire race through his own veins as Max dropped painfully to the concrete ground._

Just as Max reached Alec's side, he let out an agonized scream and fell to his knees, curling forward as though trying to protect himself from inner pain. His hands clenched tightly, nails piercing into his palms, as he slammed his fists into the floor by his head, hoping for any distraction from the bomb going off in his brain.

"Alec!" Max placed a comforting hand on the other X-5's back, feeling the tremors and tense muscles even through his thick jacket.

Logan stood abruptly as soon as Alec's legs had given way, but he was completely useless unless Max moved aside so he had no choice but to watch with bated breath as his semi-girlfriend tried to figure out what was happening.

Alec's eyes were squeezed shut against the pain flooding through his body but he could still see images as plain as day flashing across his eyelids.

_Ames White stood over Max's twitching body with a sinister smirk on his face. "Get her in the truck. We move out in five minutes."_

The pain left Alec's body as quickly as it had come, leaving him feeling drained as he panted heavily on the floor, trying his best to stay conscious. He had to get up. He had to warn her. "Max…" he managed to whimper out, clutching at her arm as she tried to sit him up, but then the world tilted on its axis and he lost the fight, darkness quickly consuming him.

"Alec? Alec! Wake up!" Max demanded, shaking his over-heated body even as she pulled his limp form into her lap. She tapped harshly at his cheek, hoping she might get a response but his head just lolled into the crook of her other arm.

"What the hell was that?" Logan asked, his voice barely above a whisper but he knew Max had heard him anyway.

She shook her head. "I have no idea." She cradled the fallen X-5's body protectively in her arms, the symmetry to Ben's death not lost on her. "Can you get Dr. Carr to come and take a look at him? I'd stay but…"

"But you've gotta get to Lydecker before he disappears for good." Logan finished for her, then hesitated for a brief moment. "Don't worry, Max. I'll watch over him. Call me if you run into trouble."

"Thanks, Logan." She pulled Alec's arm over her shoulders and fastened her other hand around his waist, lifting his muscular body with a strained groan. She shuffled him towards the couch and gently deposited him on it, taking a second to brush her fingers over his hot forehead and through his silky, though sweaty, hair. "I'm so sorry," she whispered to his still form. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Be careful," Logan added, the words falling from his mouth like a mantra as Max straightened and headed for the door. _Lydecker, this better be worth it…_

TBC

This is my first attempt at a Dark Angel fic, so please review and let me know what you think! Thanks a bunch!


	2. Reality Check

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Max hid her bike in the brush half a block from the warehouse so no one would see or hear her approaching. She continued the rest of the way on foot, constantly in tune with her surroundings in case this was some sort of ambush.

She wished like hell she had brought backup, but she had already wasted too much time helping Alec and it would take hours to track down another transgenic since her brothers and sisters had all gone to ground.

And while Joshua was incredibly strong and handy in a fight, she wasn't about to risk the big fella's life for personal gain. No, this breeding cult disaster was her own problem and she would have to face the consequences of her actions alone.

When she reached the clearing surrounding the warehouse, she gazed upward in awe at the enormous building before her. Lydecker could be anywhere in there. No wonder he chose the location. He would be able to spot someone breaking in long before his position was compromised.

Her eyes zeroed in on the back door. There was no security in sight. _Well, _she shrugged, _here goes nothin'…_

Dr. Sam Carr no sooner rang Logan's doorbell when the door swung wide open, admitting his entry. "Logan," he nodded in pleasant greeting.

"Thanks for coming, Sam. Sorry for the late hour but it's an emergency."

"Not a problem, my friend. I still owe you more than you owe me. So where's my patient?"

"Living room," Logan answered, gesturing the doc forward.

The young, male transgenic simply appeared to be sleeping on the couch. If it weren't for his furrowed brow or shallow breathing- not to mention his pale and clammy skin- Sam wouldn't have thought any differently. As it was though, he could tell the boy was suffering.

"Any idea what might have happened?" he asked Logan, lowering his voice so as not to disturb the X-5's uneasy slumber. "Did he touch anything? Eat anything…?"

"Not to my knowledge. Max said he was complaining of a headache earlier and was shaking on the way over but he insisted it wasn't being caused by the X-5's tryptophan deficiency. One minute he was standing in the doorway, the next he was curled up on the floor in pain. Not long after, he passed out."

"Well then, let's take a look, shall we?" Sam pulled a stethoscope from his bag and draped it around his neck before moving towards his fallen charge.

Sam knelt by the edge of the couch and started checking the young man's vitals. He slid the end of the stethoscope under Alec's T-shirt and while his heart was beating a bit fast for the doctor's liking, two fingers pressed to the inside of his wrist confirmed the boy's pulse was steady and strong.

Next, Sam pulled a tympanic thermometer from his bag and placed it in Alec's ear, then waited for the beep. When it went off, Alec groaned softly and tried to turn his head away from the intrusion. A quick glance at the read-out told Sam his patient had a fever of 104.6.

While the number would be dangerously high for a human, the doctor knew that a transgenic's basal body temperature ran higher than normal on average. But even so, the number was a bit disconcerting.

"Alec?" he called softly, hoping the kid was finally starting to come around. "Can you hear me?" Sam moved his hands to Alec's throat, checking for swollen glands that might indicate an infection, but the second he touched the X-5's over-heated skin, Alec cracked his eyes open and saw the stethoscope dangling in front of his face.

Without taking the time to process his surroundings, Alec's immediate thought was that the worst had happened and he was somehow back at Manticore. His adrenaline kicked in and he sat bolt upright, knocking away Sam's hands and latching a potentially crushing grip around the doctor's own throat to turn the tables.

"Don't. Touch. Me." he hissed out between clenched teeth.

"Alec! Stand down!" a sharp voice instructed from across the room, immediately making the hairs on the back of Alec's neck stand on end. Whipping around, his eyes locked onto a bespectacled man who appeared to be desperately trying to placate him. "You're okay! Let him go!"

"Logan?" Alec practically whispered, confusion evident on his face. He turned his attention back to the man in his grasp and eased his fingers from around the guy's throat. "Who the hell are _you_?" he demanded.

Sam was too preoccupied with drawing in breath to respond so Logan updated the transgenic instead.

"This is a friend of mine, Doctor Sam Carr. Max asked me to call him down after you passed out."

"Max?" Something important niggled at the back of Alec's mind as he fought to catch up on the current situation. _New mission, Lydecker, meeting, warehouse, trap…_ He straightened immediately. "Where is she?"

"She's gone," Logan replied simply.

"How long?"

"'bout forty minutes now."

Alec pushed himself off the couch unsteadily. He kept a hand on the closest light stand to keep himself from collapsing to the ground again, purposefully ignoring the doctor who hovered close by with an arm out in case Alec needed it. "Call her back in. She's in danger."

"What are you talking about, Alec?"

"It's a trap! You have to get her out of there!"

"Whoa, slow down a second… Where's this coming from?"

"I don't know, okay? I can't explain it. Just trust me on this! She shouldn't have gone alone in the first place!"

"I agree with you there. I would've gone with her as back up but…" Logan hesitated, flicking his eyes over the agitated X-5's weakened body.

"But what?" Alec had a feeling he wasn't going to like the answer.

"But she told me to stay here and keep an eye on you until she gets back," Logan muttered apologetically.

Alec swallowed down his guilt. "So this is _my_ fault… Again. Damn it." He shoved himself away from the table and staggered towards the front door, pressing the palm of his hand to the side of his head as the room tilted alarmingly around him.

Logan stepped forward to block his exit. "Hang on, where do you think you're goin'?"

"I've gotta help her. She's saved my ass more times than I can count. It's time to return the favor."

"You're not in any condition to…"

"Out of my way, Logan. Don't make me ask you twice," Alec threatened coldly.

Logan exchanged a quick glance with the doc who shrugged, clearly asking what choice did they really have in this matter? He nodded reluctantly.

"Bring her back safely."

Alec returned the gesture, jaw clenched in determination as he strode quickly towards the door. _I'm comin', Max. Just hang on…_

Max entered the warehouse stealthily, keeping her back to the wall to prevent any unwanted surprises. Her cat-like night vision allowed her to scan the first floor without any difficulty. So far, she was alone. Something didn't feel right here.

She made her way to the second story, flinching when one of the steps gave a particularly loud groan under her weight. She paused, listening intently, before continuing up the rickety staircase.

The second floor was designed for office space and though the center of the floor was wide open, there were multiple rooms on the left and right that she would have to check out. _This could take a while…_ she groaned inwardly, once again wishing she had backup who could take one side while she cleared the other.

Max took two steps forward when the sound of a gun being cocked behind her had her freezing, every muscle tense and ready to strike if need be. "Don't move another muscle, 452," the owner of the gun growled.

She hadn't heard him approaching which typically meant one of two things. Either he was another transgenic which she highly doubted, or he was a Familiar which certainly didn't bode well for her.

"Sorry, have we met before?" she asked with a falsely sweet air to her tone while contemplating potential exit strategies.

"No, but I've read your file and the pleasure's all mine."

Max shrugged her leather-clad shoulders. "Not gonna argue with ya there."

She could hear movement all around the floor now and her heart plummeted to her stomach. One idiot with a gun she could handle, but a small army of them… Not so much.

They came out of the rooms in pairs, each one armed with a gun and a cattle prod. The odds weren't looking good. When their sites trained on her chest, she reluctantly raised her arms in surrender. Then one voice boomed down to her from the third story balcony and it was a voice she knew all too well.

"Thanks for coming, 452. I was hoping you'd get my invite," Ames White smirked.

"I'm never one to pass up a good party," she volleyed back, trying not to reveal just how screwed she really was now. "Where's Lydecker?"

"Haven't you heard? He died months ago. But I knew you couldn't turn a blind eye to a good conspiracy theory. All I had to do was leak some information for your little Eyes Only companion to find, and voilà. I knew you'd take the bait."

"Am I supposed to be impressed or something?"

"I really couldn't care less what you think, 452. The outcome is still the same. You're coming with us."

"Sorry, I don't take rides from strangers, or assholes. And in case you didn't get the memo, Manticore was burned to the ground so there's no place to go."

"Correction, a Manticore _facility_ was burned to the ground. You didn't think that was the only one in existence, did you? Buildings come and go, and while it was an expensive loss to the government, it was hardly the end of the project."

Max's stomach clenched as she fought down the bile that threatened to make an appearance at White's declaration. Manticore was still out there in full swing? Why hadn't she considered that possibility before?

She was shaken from her reverie when White continued his monologue. "They hired me to clean up the mess because there are plenty more of your brainwashed friends still held in captivity where they belong and it's just not worth the effort of trying to bring you all in."

"So why don't you just put a bullet in me and be done with it?" she demanded, refusing to beg for her life.

"Because apparently you're more important than the rest of them and it was requested I take you in alive. But don't you worry, 452. By the time they're done with you, you'll _wish_ I had put a bullet through your skull."

He nodded to his team and a handful of them moved forward to surround her, cattle prods at the ready. Max put up a good fight, taking five of them down before the next wave of soldiers moved in and overpowered her. She grunted in pain as the first prod hit her side long enough to force her to her knees and from there, she was an easy target.

They jabbed at her until she collapsed to the floor, unconscious. "Enough," White ordered as he made his way down the stairs to their level. He stood over her twitching body with a smirk on his face. "Get her in the truck. We move out in five minutes."

Glancing at his watch, he noted the time being 1:32 AM. Plenty of time to make it home for breakfast.

By the time Alec stumbled his way through the woods surrounding the warehouse, it was just turning two o'clock. Standing there, panting and surveying the area, Alec knew in his heart he was already too late.

"Damn it!" he barked. _Where are you, Max? _He pulled his cell phone from his pocket which he had switched to silent mode before entering the woods. Glancing at the screen, he saw one missed call followed by a text message from Logan.

JUST SAW THREE TRUCKS PULL AWAY. TRACKING THEM NOW.

"Logan, you're my new best friend…" Alec muttered aloud and he called the hacker back. "Hey, so where am I going?"

TBC

Thank you all for your supportive reviews so far! Please keep them coming and I'll do the same with the chapters. Plenty more to come!


	3. Welcome Home

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

When Max finally awoke, she was being dragged down a brightly lit hallway that was a bit too similar to Manticore for her liking. The two men flanking her were unnaturally strong and her wrists were shackled against her back. As if the two weren't bad enough, she could hear at least six more marching behind them just in case she attempted to break free.

"Where are you taking me?" she groaned, still too weak to put up a fight.

"Orders are to report to Command," the soldier on her left replied. "Welcome home, 452."

Alec sent up a silent thank you to whoever was listening that he had gotten a job requiring a sector pass as Logan's directions brought him through six checkpoints. His frustration grew with each delay, as did his speed in order to make up for the lost time.

According to Logan's information, the trucks had rolled down a dead end dirt road thirty minutes ago just outside of the Seattle limits. When Alec was half a block out from Max's new location, he ditched his bike and continued on foot as his life-long training dictated. Old habits died hard after all.

When the building finally came into view, Alec's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as a shiver raced up his spine. Everything from the guard towers to the razor-wire fences screamed Manticore. They couldn't have rebuilt it all _that_ fast, could they?

"Are you seein' this?" he asked as soon as Logan picked up his call.

"Only in pieces," Logan replied, typing his way past firewalls even as they spoke. "They've somehow found a way to block satellite surveillance of the area but I've managed to tap into their direct feed. Not sure how long I can stay in undetected though. From what I can see, the place is a fortress, Alec. Get out of there while you still can and then we'll be able to work out some sort of infiltration strategy."

Alec shook his head before Logan even finished his last sentence. "There's no time for that." There was a nauseating tightness in his stomach that had been growing stronger ever since he woke up in Logan's apartment. He couldn't really explain it, but he knew it was being caused by extreme anxiety, and not his own. _Don't give up on me, Max._

He fell silent as he considered his options. There was only one way into that building, and he knew what he had to do. He let out a slow breath to steady his nerves, then stood to his full height, head held high in resignation. "Hey, Logan… Do me a favor."

"Of course. What do you need?"

"Don't let Max come back for me. Tell her it's a fair trade, and we're even now."

Logan frowned in stunned confusion. The cocky, self-serving transgenic wasn't really suggesting he was going to hand himself over to the enemy, was he? "Alec, wait…"

"Keep her safe, alright? Good luck, buddy." Even as Logan was stammering his objections, Alec snapped his phone in half and scattered the pieces in the river behind him. He didn't want to risk anyone tracing the numbers in his cell back to Eyes Only.

Alec glanced up at the bright blue sky, wondering if he'd ever see it again. _The things you sacrifice for family…_ Then, steeling his heart as well as his resolve, he strutted his way towards the front gate.

By the time Max and her armed guard reached the Command Center, she had most of her strength and mobility back. Her eyes took in every corridor and door as they went, building a mental blue print in case she ever got the chance to make a run for it.

When that final door sealed shut behind them though, it felt like a block of ice landed in her stomach. A bank of computer monitors lined one whole wall, displaying every angle the security cameras were currently fixed on. A large desk chair sat in front of them, allowing its occupant easy access to the control panel just below the monitors.

A withered-looking hand reached out and toggled a switch, adjusting one of the many security cameras on the premises. "I'm glad you've finally rejoined our family, 452," a slightly gravely voice stated from the other side of the chair. It sounded familiar, and yet…

"Not by choice," Max retorted. "I thought orders were to kill me and mine? So why am I still standing?"

"I've told you, my dear. You're the one we've been looking for." The chair spun around to face her and Max had to fight the urge to throw up.

"No… You died… I _watched _you die!"

Half of the woman's face was horribly burned and it stood to reason that the same went for the rest of her shriveled body, but nevertheless, her identity was unmistakable.

Madame Renfro stood slowly from her seat with a condescending smile on her face. "I know you've seen what became of your brother, Zack. Did you really think one little bullet was going to stop me for good?"

"Call it wishful thinking."

Renfro chose to ignore the verbal jab and backtracked to her previous story. "That perfect body of yours is in high demand these days, or so I hear. Sandeman created you for a very special purpose, and I'm not about to let you fall into the wrong hands."

"Wrong hands? You talkin' about White and his band of merry morons?"

Renfro slowly shuffled forward, reminding Max of those zombie movies Alec enjoyed so much. She couldn't help but flinch away as the woman reached out a shaky hand and stroked the side of her face gently.

"There's still so much you don't understand, child. But don't worry. You will, when the time is right."

Max's upper lip curled in disgust and she was forced to avert her eyes. As she did so, her gaze fell on the sudden commotion taking place on one of the exterior monitors. Her eyes widened as she recognized Alec strolling right up to the front gate. What the hell was he thinking?

The door slid open again behind her and a slightly younger X-5 appeared. "Madame Renfo, there's activity at the front gate."

Renfro turned and took in the scene occurring just outside their fortified walls. "It seems you have company, 452. I had a feeling we'd be seeing him again as well… Though he's much earlier than I expected."

Alec barely made it within a hundred feet of the building when the spotlights suddenly blinded him and reinforcements raced forward to guard the perimeter. He held up a hand to shield his eyes against the onslaught of light. "Don't shoot!"

"Freeze!" the squad leader shouted at him as he approached, gun aimed with deadly accuracy.

"Easy there, fellas… I come in peace. See?" Alec reluctantly surrendered his gun as the soldiers closed in around him, knowing that if he even _attempted_ to draw it, he'd be shot dead on the spot.

"On your knees!" the apparent leader demanded.

Alec raised his hands slowly to show he had no intentions of causing trouble. "I just wanna come home, pal. Can't we discuss this like civilized men?"

He wasn't exactly surprised to feel his knees being suddenly kicked out from underneath him. He landed hard in the dirt but managed to keep from face planting with the grace only a transgenic possessed. "Apparently not… Now is that any way to treat family?"

"Hands behind your head!"

This time, Alec did as he was told so as not to add any more tension to the situation. Nevertheless, eight guns were cocked almost simultaneously around him, all pointing at his chest. _Crap…_ He swallowed hard before raising his eyebrows in tentative hope. "Parlay?"

He barely had time to wince before the butt of a rifle connected with the side of his head.

Max visibly flinched when she saw Alec collapse to the ground for the second time that night. He was going to wake up with one hell of a headache. _Idiot._

She watched as a few of the soldiers grabbed Alec under his arms and dragged him out of frame.

"Where are they taking him?" she demanded of Renfro.

"To his new home. Don't worry, 452. You'll get the chance to say goodbye. We'll talk again soon." She nodded to the men who were still holding Max's arms and they escorted her out of the room.

Max's cuffs were unlocked mere seconds before she was shoved into a cell and the heavy metal door clanged shut behind her. She rubbed her tender wrists and glanced around. Instead of the usual barracks, her cell was surrounded by bars instead of concrete walls, presumably so they could keep an eye on her from every angle.

There were a handful of other cells in the room, similar to her own, but only one other housed an occupant. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it was Alec, still unconscious and sprawled on the floor where they had dropped him, but seemingly okay otherwise. She took a seat on the edge of her cot and waited in silence.

It felt like hours had passed, though it had probably been no longer than fifteen minutes, when a deep groan from the adjacent cell announced the other X-5's return to consciousness. She glanced over at him as he brought his hands up to cradle his throbbing head. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the bars to convey her annoyance towards him.

"Oww, damn…" Alec griped as he lifted his head enough to take in his surroundings. "Okay, _that_ was just completely unnecessary."

"Oh really?" Max shot back skeptically, easily drawing his attention. "Cause I'd say it was pretty well deserved! What the hell are you doing here, Alec?"

"Isn't it obvious?" he smirked, using his legs and elbows to shift himself backwards a few feet before slumping against the nearest set of bars. "I'm here to rescue you."

Max snorted. "Yeah, well… Mission failed. Now I have to save _my_ ass _and _your ass."

"Hey, my mission was to make it in here without gettin' my ass _killed_, so all in all, I'd say it's been pretty damn successful. So far."

She frowned at him. "Are you really this stupid or do you just have a death wish?"

"Maybe a little of both?"

"Unbelievable…" Max launched herself up onto her feet and started pacing her cell, blowing off some steam. "I have this undeniable urge to smack you upside the head for this, and maybe Logan too for lettin' you do it, but seein' as how I know there's not much he could've done to stop you, maybe I should just smack you twice instead!"

"You done?" Alec asked, knowing Max tended to go off on rants when she was really pissed. The scowl she sent his way was enough to make him glad that looks couldn't _actually_ kill.

Giving up on the defensive humor for a moment, he decided she deserved to hear a more serious explanation. "Look, Maxie, I owed you one, okay? You've saved my ass more times than I can count. Did you really think I was just gonna sit back and let them get their hands on you again?"

"Honestly?" she asked with an eyebrow raised, clearing pointing out his previous history.

"Ouch," he muttered. "Guess I deserved that."

"So now that you're locked up, same as me, mind if I ask where your genius plan goes from here?"

Alec shrugged. "Pretty much the same as last time I broke you out. Create a distraction long enough to get you over the wall."

"And what about you? Gonna start diggin' through your cell with a spoon?"

"The escape plan only has room for one, Max. Don't worry about me. I was kinda startin' to miss the free meals and rec time anyway."

"As _if_," she scoffed. "I'm still amazed they didn't just open fire on your ass the way you waltzed right up to the front gate." Unless Alec was very much mistaken, there was a hint of admiration mixed with the anger in her voice. Then her tone changed completely. "They didn't let you live out of the kindness of their hearts, ya know."

"Yeah, I know," Alec admitted quietly, dropping his gaze to his hands as they fidgeted in his lap.

"You've been on the outside for too long. They won't be able to trust you again on missions unless…" Her voice trailed off as the full extent of their situation occurred to her.

"Unless they put me through reindoctrination. Again," Alec finished for her, then fell silent.

Max blinked back the tears that unwittingly started to well up in her eyes as she heard the unmistakable quiver in his voice. The smart ass would never admit it, but he was terrified. Alec knew _exactly_ what he was getting himself into, long before he approached the front gate, and yet he didn't turn back when he had the chance.

"You should've just left me here," she stated softly.

"_Now_ you tell me…" he responded with a forced eye roll, needing to rebuild his walls again before they completely crumbled.

"Hey, Alec?"

"Yeah, Max?" He glanced back over at her, genuine curiosity in his eyes.

"Thank you."

TBC

Love it or hate it so far? Please review! Lots of hurt!Alec to come.


	4. Getting Cocky

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

This time, hours _did _pass while the transgenics awaited their fates in silence. Even though each minute felt like an eternity, it was still too soon when Madame Renfro shuffled her way into the cellblock.

Alec immediately forced himself to his feet, never one to give his opponent the upper hand. He stared straight ahead like a good little soldier and bit the inside of his cheek; anything to keep down his lunch and avoid looking at the woman as Renfro hobbled over to his cell.

"Welcome home, 494," she wheezed in his direction, making him swallow convulsively. Renfro leaned in closer to the bars of his cage, peering calculatingly up at him. "You don't look so well, soldier."

"Funny, I was gonna say the same to you," Alec retorted, continuing to look straight past her. From the corner of his eye, he saw Max attempt to stifle a smirk by biting her lower lip. That alone was enough to make his rescue attempt worth the effort.

Silence fell once again as Renfro contemplated him, her eyes slowly roving up and down his body making Alec's stomach clench uneasily. "You actually love her, don't you?"

The question caught him so off guard that he blinked stupidly at her, forced to make eye contact no matter how hard he had been trying to avoid it. "Excuse me?" he finally croaked when he was able to find his tongue again.

"Don't play dumb with me. You wouldn't be here if you didn't have feelings for her. Two rounds of reindoctrination during your short, little life and all attempts at crushing that cocky spirit of yours have failed. You must have known death or worse awaited you by coming back in and yet, here you are."

Alec shrugged, hoping it wasn't too late to hide his true feelings behind his mask of casual indifference. "Got lost lookin' for the strip club. Must've turned left when I was supposed to turn right. My bad."

Renfro smirked, never a good sign if history had anything to say about it. "A few months out on your own and you've already forgotten your training and respect for authority."

"What can I say? I'm easily corruptible."

"I've noticed. Don't you worry, though. I have a talent for stomping out independence when it comes to my soldiers. We're just going to have to up your dose of medication again."

Alec paled at the thought of a higher level of reindoctrination but otherwise kept his reaction neutral. He wasn't going to rise to the bait.

"We'll run the gamut of tests of course, check for any last minute defects, then get you back out in the world and killing people like you were designed to do."

He glared defiantly down at her, a muscle in his jaw twitching in anger. "I'm not your little pet assassin anymore," he gritted out through clenched teeth. "Nothing you do is gonna change that."

"If that's the case, we'll just have to put you down for good. But we'll be sure to salvage what we can of you. Waste not, want not after all." A deranged hunger reflected in her eyes as they roamed his body again, reminiscent of a predator sizing up a piece of meat.

Alec's heart skipped a beat at the thought of being dissected like Max's brother, Zack. He'd just as soon blow his own brains out, but considering Manticore still managed to put X-5 599 back together after doing just that, not even that option held any salvation.

"Of course, now that we have some leverage to use, perhaps you'll _both_ learn to cooperate without a fuss." Renfro's gaze shifted to Max as she spoke.

So that was it, huh? They were going to use Max and Alec against each other until they were complacent, mindless drones. As if Alec was going to let that happen…

"Leverage?" he quickly scoffed. "Jeez, you really have been out of the loop, huh, lady? Max hates my guts. Hell, she'd probably thank you for takin' me out so I stop screwin' up her life."

Max wasn't quite fast enough to conceal the hurt that flashed through her eyes at his words and Renfro's crooked smile grew. "I beg to differ. Let's put it to the test, shall we?"

With a nod of her head, her small escort of soldiers moved to circle his cage, cattle prods in hand. He immediately went on the defensive, falling back from the bars with his fists raised until he stood in the middle of his enclosed space. Unfortunately, the cage was small enough that by standing where he now was, he was accessible to them from all sides.

On the other hand, the soldiers would have to get much closer to the bars if they intended on reaching him, which would put them within striking distance. He readied himself for a fight.

"Wait! Don't!" Max shouted. She knew Alec wasn't functioning at a hundred percent due to what had happened at Logan's place, and the last thing she wanted to do was see him take on more than he could handle. "Leave him alone. I'll take your damn tests, just don't hurt Alec."

"What? Max, no!" Alec shot back, his concentration thrown as he turned to look at her over his shoulder. "I can take these guys!"

An over-eager soldier took advantage of the X-5's distraction and lunged forward, jabbing the electrical device into 494's left side as soon as he left it exposed. Alec yelped in surprise and pain as the current flowed through his muscles, forcing them to contract to the point of tearing.

As he struggled to move away from the deadly toy, two soldiers on the other side of his cage took his sudden surge towards them as a threat and they immediate reciprocated. One prod hit him in the chest while the other dug into his abdomen.

He sank to his knees, clinging to the bars in front of him while biting back the urge to scream. It took everything he had to stay conscious but he refused to leave Max alone and unprotected.

"Stop it!" he could hear her yelling over the pounding in his ears. "Please! I'll cooperate!"

"Enough!" Renfro demanded and the soldiers pulled back.

Alec slumped to the floor, gasping in air as he fought to control the agony coursing through his system even now that the cattle prods had been removed.

"I'd say she cares for you after all, 494," Renfro stated matter-of-factly, crouching down to savor his reaction. Alec could do little more than grunt in response. "Take her to the exam room. I want a full work up and blood assay by tonight."

"Max…" Alec breathed as an armed escort opened her cage and dragged her from it. She made no move to fight them, sparing an apologetic glance his way as she passed in front of his cage.

It was now or never. Max was out from behind her bars. He needed to create a distraction before they tied her down for testing. If only he could get his twitching muscles to cooperate!

"Say goodbye now, 494. Odds are you two love birds won't be seeing each other again."

Using strength he didn't even know he had left, he lunged at the nearest guard who hadn't quite pulled his cattle prod free of the bars yet and yanked the weapon from the startled man's hands.

Alec pivoted on his heels and snaked his arm through the bars at the front of his cage, wrapping it around Renfro's neck before she had the time to react. He pressed the cruel device snug up against her spine as the guards attempted to rush to her rescue.

"Stay back!" Alec barked and was relieved to see his opponents skid to a stop. He nodded towards the two men standing on either side of Max.

"Let her go or queen bee here meets the bug zapper." Both men held up their arms and backed away from Max slowly. Alec grinned and lowered his voice so only Renfro could hear him. "See what happens when you get too cocky?"

Renfro chuckled, but the guttural sound was cut off abruptly when Alec tightened his grip on her throat. "Where do you think she's going to go?" Renfro wheezed out. "There are layers upon layers of security in this building and out in the yard. She won't make it ten feet."

"Let's agree to disagree on that, shall we?" He nodded to the idiot who had underestimated Alec and was now standing there, weaponless and in shock. "You. Open this cell."

"Hold your position!" Renfro barked at the kid.

"You wanna do this the hard way?" Alec snarled next to her ear. He gave her a short zap with the prod eliciting a gasp of pain from Renfro, then turned his focus back to the guard. "Open the door now or her death will be on your hands." The kid hesitated so Alec gave him a bit more incentive. "Snap to it, soldier!"

The guard nearly jumped out of his skin. He had been hired to bring the prisoners food and water, not to interact with them. But he had heard the stories of what a transgenic was capable of, and he sure as hell didn't want to piss one off. He unlocked the door and stood back.

Max came forward immediately to assist, taking the prod from Alec's shaking hand and assuming control of their hostage so her companion could untangle himself from the bars and step free. As soon as he did so, he "borrowed" a gun from the first guard he passed.

"You're not going to get away with this," Renfro warned to her new captor.

"Watch me," Max growled back then glanced over at Alec as he stumbled while making his way towards her. He was forced to steady himself against the wall. "You alright?"

"I'm fine," he mumbled, waving her off. "Let's get outta here."

Using Renfro as her personal shield, Max marched the decrepit woman through the corridors, warning everyone they came up against to step back or be responsible for their boss's painful demise.

Alec covered her back, trying desperately to keep his vision focused without letting on that he was having trouble doing so. _Not again! Not now!_

Piercing pain shot through his skull, forcing him to bring a palm up to his temple and he didn't quite clamp down on the gasp fast enough. "Alec?" Max asked without turning around, needing confirmation that he was still with her.

"It's happenin' again, Max," he responded cryptically through gritted teeth in hopes that she would understand but the others would remain oblivious. "I can't make it stop. You've gotta run now," he ordered in the calmest voice he could muster, completely back in soldier mode.

"Alec, I'm not gonna…"

"Just take this and run," he enforced, holding the gun out to her but she shook her head.

"I don't do guns, remember?"

"I think now's the perfect time to make an exception, Maxie."

"No. I'm not leaving you."

Alec knew they were running out of time. He gave her a harsh shove towards the last door separating them from the yard. "Go! Get outta here!" A blinding light flashed behind his eyelids and he doubled over in pain, bringing both hands up to cradle his head. "Argh!" The gun clattered loudly to the hard floor.

The other soldiers were moving in now that one of the threats was weakened and Max knew her only chance at survival was to run. She couldn't hold them all off on her own and they knew that. Using Renfro as leverage was only going to work so long as the guards didn't find an opening to attack.

Still… She had already lost Ben to these people. She had lost Tinga, and Jack, and Eva… Even her fearless brother, Zack. She'd be damned if she was going to leave another brother behind to be tortured and dissected.

"Take another step and I'll snap her neck like a twig," she warned the others who were continuing to slowly close in on them.

Knowing her choices were limited, Max was forced to drop the cattle prod and, while keeping one arm around Renfro's fragile throat, she used her now free hand to pull Alec up by the collar of his shirt. "Come on! Stay with me!"

"Max, please… I can't…" he whimpered, stumbling into another wall when Max's sharp jerk threw him off balance, seemingly random images suddenly flashing before his eyes again. "Gah!"

_Renfro uses her own body to purposefully shield Max's as they cross the heavily secured yard. "Don't shoot! I need her alive!"_

_"Please. Just leave me here and run," Alec pants, desperately trying to drag in more air with each breath._

_"I'll come back for you," Max whispers back, then she blurs towards the gate and to freedom._

Alec breathed a small sigh of relief. "It's gonna be okay, Max. You're gonna make it out of here. Trust me."

Ignoring Alec's delirious ramblings, Max backtracked a step to reach his side once more. "I can't carry you, Alec, but I can support you. Pull yourself together, soldier!" She gripped his upper arm tightly and began dragging him towards the exit.

"What's wrong with him?" Renfro questioned as she was forced to go wherever Max went.

"None of your business," Max retorted, though her eyes softened as they fell on her barely conscious companion.

Alec did his best to keep pace with Max, determined to get her away from Manticore once and for all, and for the first time in his life, he didn't care what that would cost him in return.

The second they stepped through the doors, all guns were trained on them. Renfro was the first to panic, placing herself between Max and their bullets. "Don't shoot! I need her alive!"

The gate was within reach. All Max had to do was get a running start and she'd be free. She started dragging Alec forward again but he pulled his arm out of her grasp and collapsed to his hands and knees in the dirt.

"Max, wait," he panted out. "You know I can't make that jump like this. You tried, okay? But now it's time for you to go, and never look back. I can't be responsible for what they'll do to you. Please. Just leave me here and run. I'll find my own way out."

His entire body felt like it was on fire and the intensity was increasing just behind his eyes. He was sure they were about to pop right out of his head. Why wasn't the pain backing off yet? The vision, or whatever it was, was over, right?

It was obvious Alec needed time to heal. He was right. There was no way he was going to clear that fence right now and Max knew it. She had done all she could, and though it was a knife to her heart, she had to go on alone. "I'll come back for you," she whispered before releasing Renfro and dashing for the fence, not waiting to hear his protests.

Alec dropped his head between his shaking shoulders as sweat broke out all over his body and the images took full control of his vision once again.

_Alec watches as Renfro screams out orders for everyone to hold their fire, then swings his head around just in time to watch Max nail her landing on the other side of the wire fence. She turns for one last look back at him. _

_Alec barely has time to feel the relief flood his body when a gunshot suddenly rings out, deafening in its intensity. He watches in horror as Max's body jolts backward in slow motion, then sways on the spot as a crimson stain starts to blossom across the front of her shirt. _

"_I'm sorry…" she gasps out to him with tears in her eyes, knowing her death would condemn him as well. Her eyes flutter shut and she falls forward onto the unforgiving ground, dead._

"No!" Alec screamed in terror, blinking furiously to clear his eyes. As they finally slid back into focus on his current surroundings, he looked up in time to see Max make her spectacular leap and time momentarily stood still. He glanced over at Renfro who was waving frantically at one of the X-7s whose gun was trained on Max.

"Hold your fire!" she screamed out, and Alec turned his attention back to Max who was just now cresting the top of the gate.

There was no time to lose. He blurred forward on an adrenaline high just as the boom of the gun reverberated through his sensitive ears. He thrust his body forward with everything he had left.

Pain tore through his left shoulder and he hit the ground hard with a grunt, rolling from the force of the blast until he finally came to a rest on his stomach. Max landed safely on the other side and immediately spun around to look at him in horror. "Alec!"

Blood dripped steadily from his arm and mixed with the dirt beneath him. Max moved to take a step towards him but the look in his eyes forced her to stop dead in her tracks. His eyes… They were telling her goodbye.

Alec forced a weak smile onto his face for her benefit and hers alone. "Go, Max. Run."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, tears in her eyes, as she turned her back on him and disappeared into the surrounding woods.

Alec clawed feebly at the dirt by his head, attempting to combat the pain radiating through his body as well as trying to muster up enough strength to regain his feet and go out in a blaze of glory.

He could hear and feel the vibrations of pounding feet shaking the earth around him and he blinked up wearily as blurry figures approached him on all sides. Renfro crouched down into his line of site, giving his body an evaluating scan before locking eyes with him.

"See what happens when you get cocky?" she asked, throwing his own words back in his face. She nodded to a soldier standing next to him who aimed a tranquilizer gun at his back. He heard the pop as the trigger was pulled and felt the sharp sting just below his right shoulder blade.

"Guess we've got our consolation prize instead, boys. Take him to the lab." That was the last thing Alec heard before the drugs pitched him into darkness.

TBC

Now we're getting to the fun stuff! Lol Please review if you enjoyed this chapter and if you have any requests for upcoming events. Thanks everyone!


	5. Put to the Test

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Alec was pulled from the darkness by a soft hand on his cheek. He wasn't sure why, but his immediate thought was "Max…" Maybe this had all just been a terrible fever dream and he was back at his place and Max was tending to him. A guy could wish, right?

He turned his face slightly into the gentle caress, hoping it'd be enough to take away the rest of the aches that were slowly starting to gang up on him. What the hell happened? Did he get hit by a truck?

"Max isn't here, handsome," a cold voice responded.

Alec's eyes shot open and he jerked away from the hand, breaking through his drug-induced haze and igniting the agony in his body, particularly in his left shoulder. "Ah!" He clenched his eyes shut again, not wanting to see the smug expression on Renfro's twisted face.

"Good morning, sunshine. I was starting to worry the drugs had packed too powerful of a punch for you to handle."

When Renfro's footsteps started to move around him, Alec forced himself to control his breathing as well as the pain so he could open his eyes again and keep the evil witch in his sights.

From what little he could see, he was in a testing lab, very much like the ones he frequented at Manticore. A shiver ran down his spine, making him bite his lip as his protesting muscles were forced to move against their will yet again.

Renfro tutted, staring down at him with feigned sympathy in her eyes. "We've got a lot to discuss today, 494, so don't go passing out on me just yet."

"I've got nothin' to say to you," he forced out through gritted teeth.

"All in good time. I have a feeling that by the end of the day, you'll be a lot more cooperative."

Alec swallowed hard when she snapped a latex glove onto her right hand, mere inches from where he lay.

His immediate response was to defend himself but he quickly discovered that his arms, waist, and legs were strapped down tightly to the metal table he was currently using as a bed. All he could do was lay there and watch as she snapped a glove onto her left hand as well.

"Struggling will only make this harder on yourself, but by all means, if it makes you feel better…" She turned her attention to a tray of sterile instruments ready for use at her disposal.

Wanting to prevent further injury, Alec was in the process of forcing his body to relax, but the sight of Renfro picking up a sharp pair of sheers made him instantly tense up again.

When she took a few steps further down the table, he raised his head to keep her in view. "What the hell are you doing?" he demanded, hoping she didn't hear the slight quiver in his voice. He pulled frantically against his restraints again on reflex but the results were the same as before.

"Taking care of my property," Renfro answered evenly before lowering the sheers to the hem of his shirt. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay perfectly still, not even breathing, as she ran the icy metal along the center of his abdomen and chest, easily slicing through the fabric as if it were a piece of paper.

He dropped his head back down to the table and tilted it to the side as she snipped through his collar, not trusting her to avoid his skin if the opportunity presented itself. She smirked at his distrust, then began cutting away the sleeves so his shirt could be removed without jostling his injured body.

"Now then, let's see the extent of the damage…" Renfro stated clinically while slipping a stethoscope into her ears. She listened to his pounding heart and strong lungs for any irregular sounds, and Alec's over-heated skin prickled each time the cold chestpiece made contact.

"Sounds like you've lucked out, 494. Your major organs weren't penetrated, but it came damn close to your left lung. Shall we find out how close?"

Alec watched warily as she put down the stethoscope to free up both of her hands. He struggled to control his breathing as her latex-covered fingers began to poke and prod at the bullet hole in his shoulder.

Alec bit the inside of his cheek as pain flared through his upper torso and all the way down to his fingertips. He desperately tried to contain his gag reflex when she pressed two of her fingers into the wound, feeling around for internal damage and debris.

"Judging by the amount of blood you've lost, I think it's safe to say the bullet nicked your subclavian artery," she announced as she searched for said artery, watching in fascination as the muscles in Alec's neck corded and he began to sweat profusely, no doubt on the verge of shock. "Ah, here we are…"

She found the thready pulse with her fingertips and slid a hemostatic clamp into Alec's wound between her own digits, securing the device around the damaged artery and successfully cutting off the blood flow. As the small entrance hole was forced to stretch while Renfro worked, Alec couldn't contain his cries of agony anymore.

He slammed his head back into the metal table, hoping for any secondary pain strong enough to offset the torturous stabs taking place in his shoulder. At this point, he would just as happily knock himself into oblivion again just to end the pain.

"Stop…" he whimpered when unconsciousness eluded him. "Please, just stop."

She paused her rough ministrations and looked up into his suddenly boyish features. When she carelessly pulled her fingers from inside his body, he jolted on the table with a gasp and a tear slid down his flushed cheek.

"It doesn't have to be like this, you know," she responded in a falsely soothing voice, stroking up and down his arm with the thumb of her clean hand in some resemblance of twisted comfort. Reaching over to the tray of instruments again, she held up a needle with a clear fluid in it, no doubt a sedative. "I could take the pain away…"

"I'm guessin' not out of the kindness of your heart." Alec watched the needle as she waved it in front of him, teasing him with the idea of relief but holding it just out of his grasp.

"Sorry, handsome. It doesn't work like that. You've gotta give to receive."

"What do you want?" he asked tentatively, knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

"I want 452 back."

Alec panted out a sound that was a mix between a laugh and a sob. Clearly there wasn't going to be any relief any time soon. "Screw you."

"Suit yourself," Renfro shrugged, dropping the needle back onto the tray. "I have all night, 494. You'll tell me everything I need to know eventually. You're just prolonging the inevitable."

"Max is long gone," Alec spat back at her. "You'll never find her."

"Let's agree to disagree, shall we?" she smiled, using a clean cloth to dab at the sweat and tears on his face.

DA-DA-DA

Max burst into Logan's apartment, out of breath and scaring the poor guy half to death.

"Max?" he practically squeaked as his heart pounded in his chest and adrenaline shot through his body. He pushed himself out of his computer chair, wanting to pull her into his arms, and it took all his willpower to keep his distance. "Max, are you alright?" He glanced towards the door, just now realizing she had been the only one to enter. "Where's…?"

"We have to go back for him, Logan. If you can pull up the blueprints of the building, I think I know where they're keeping him. I just have to find a way to get past their security."

"Whoa, slow down for a sec. Alec is still alive?"

"Last I saw him, though he's gotta be in a lot of pain. The idiot got himself captured, not to mention shot, just to get me out. And now I have to go save his ass in return."

Logan dropped his eyes to the ground. "Max, he… He told me not to let you do that."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "He what?"

"Before he cut off communication, he said, 'don't let Max come back for me.' Something about it being a fair trade and that you guys are even now."

"I don't give a damn what he said. We were trained not to leave a fellow soldier behind."

"Don't you think Manticore is counting on that? It's _you_ they want, Max. They're just keeping him as bait."

"See, that doesn't work for me either. They're going to torture him till I show up again or until he gives up my whereabouts."

"Do you think he will? Give you up, I mean…" Logan didn't want to ask the question, but if there was any chance, Max needed to run.

Max looked up at Logan. Any other day, she'd say of course Alec would do whatever it took to save his own ass, but after what she saw him do at the compound, she knew better. "No. No, the stubborn ass won't say a word and they'll hurt him that much more because of it. I can't let that happen. Not because of me."

She dropped her eyes to the ground as Renfro's words from long ago echoed in the back of her mind. _Don't you see, 452? You're poison. You destroy everyone that you love._

Decision made, she looked back up at Logan with determination. "I'm getting him out of there. Are you helping me, or not?"

DA-DA-DA

By the time Renfro had cleared the wound of debris, namely fragments of his broken shoulder blade since the bullet went straight through, irrigated the injury with a liquid that felt like acid, and stitched her way through multiple layers of tissue and skin, Alec was on the verge of passing out again.

Reaching up, she slapped him hard across the face, leaving a bloody handprint behind from her stained gloves. He jerked back to consciousness with a feeble groan, bordering on the edge of a whimper at how close he had been to relief only to be brought back with even more pain.

"You're not getting off that easily, 494. I still have questions for you."

"Never gonna give her up," he stated in a weak voice, barely above a whisper as he stared dejectedly at the wall to his right. Maybe if he didn't look at the horrible creature butchering his shoulder, he could pretend she didn't exist.

"Very admirable, but also very foolish. Anyway, that's not all I need to know. I'm giving you a second chance for redemption here."

"Not interested."

"Answer my questions, and I'll put you back in your cage for the rest of the week with no more pain and plenty of food and water. Don't tell me that doesn't tempt you…"

"'m not gonna play your stupid games. Just harvest me and be done with it."

"Giving up so soon, are we? I must admit, I'm disappointed. What happened to the fire you used to have? 452 tamed you, didn't she."

"Bite me."

Renfro pulled her soiled gloves off and tossed them in the trash. Eyes raking over his exposed skin again, she couldn't help but to reach out and feel the genetically enhanced body beneath her bare fingers. Starting on his left side, she grazed her hand down his ribs to the burn left behind by the cattle prod.

Alec jolted as her cold fingers caressed his skin and his head snapped around to look up at her. Clearly, ignoring her wasn't enough to make her go away. "What are you…?" His question was cut off abruptly with a hiss of pain as she pressed hard against the damaged skin.

"It's incredible how much a transgenic's body can withstand, and I'm not just talking about a high tolerance for pain. The learning capacity, the strength, the resilience, the specifically chosen gene sequences… Do you even realize how special you are?"

Her hand slid up his side and across his stomach to the second burn he received, relishing in the reflexive clenching of his abdominal muscles beneath her touch.

"Let me guess, special enough to be put down for my insubordination?" he gritted out, trying to ignore her wandering hand. He shivered as her nails lightly raked across his skin.

"Hardly." She traced his abs and slid up his breastbone until she reached the third mark on his chest, a bit too close to his heart for comfort. "I know your secret, 494." She smiled as his heart rate picked up beneath her palm. "And I'm going to figure out how to control it. You didn't think you were paired with 452 randomly, did you?"

"Is that the question I'm supposed to be answerin', or was that rhetorical?"

Renfro leaned over Alec, relishing the way he squirmed under the added pressure of her hand on his torso. "With all of Sandeman's crazy ramblings, I knew he finally succeeded in creating the perfect specimen, being 452. What I neglected to see was the fact he has always been an equal opportunist, and if he made the perfect female, it would stand to reason he would also make the perfect male counterpart."

"Is this part of your brilliant torture plan? Babble nonsense at your captive until he finally cracks?"

"You knew that X-7 was going to pull that trigger before it happened. I don't know how, but you saw it."

Alec shrugged as best he could, feigning indifference. "Hate to disappoint, but I was just tryin' to jump the fence. Wrong place, wrong time scenario. That's all it was."

Renfro used her other hand to stroke through Alec's sweaty hair, brushing her thumb over his forehead, almost in reverence. "Either way, we'll find out very soon."

After a moment, she stood back up to her full height, giving him a condescending pat on the chest and mussing up his hair, which earned her a glare from the young transgenic. "Get some rest, 494. Your testing begins in two hours, and you'll need your strength."

TBC

A/N: Sorry my section breaks haven't been showing up in my chapters! I just realized it on the last post I made, so now I'm trying a different approach. Hopefully they'll show up now. Please keep those amazing reviews coming! Thank you all!


	6. Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Two hours Renfro had said before disappearing behind a heavy, metal door. Two hours, and then the pain would really begin. In the grand scheme of things, two hours was nothing, especially if death awaited you when the clock ran out.

But laying on that cold, unforgiving table with only his dark thoughts for company, time seemed to stand still. Two hours was an eternity when you were already resigned to your fate and just wanted to get it over with.

For the first half hour, Alec struggled to find a way out of his restraints but his efforts resulted in nothing but bloody wrists and ankles, not to mention exhaustion. When an hour had passed, his discomfort was starting to get the better of him.

He was shaking from the chilly air on his bare torso, his shoulder throbbed with pain, and he could barely move more than an inch to ease the kinks from his limbs. Even the back of his head ached from when he slammed it against the table earlier. Life just wasn't fair sometimes.

After an hour and a half, he was desperate for Renfro to come back in and just end it by any means possible, preferably in a quick and painless manner. When two hours finally rolled around and the white-haired she-devil came back through that door, however, he suddenly found himself wishing he had more time. Funny how that happened.

"I trust that you're well-rested and ready for round two?" she grinned, clearly knowing that he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep during the time she had been gone. More than likely, she had been watching him the entire time from inside the control center. The thought alone made Alec's skin itch uncomfortably.

Nevertheless, he forced a cocky smirk onto his lips as he replied, "Oh I'm always ready for round two. Never had any complaints before."

Renfro matched his smirk with one of her own. "Except for 452 of course…"

_Ouch. _That one stung a little. He shrugged the best he could with his good shoulder and played it off like Max's kick to his chest the first day they met hadn't also been a kick to his pride. "She's not really my type."

"So far as I can tell, she is _exactly _your type. Made for you, in fact. Or, more than likely, _you_ were made for _her_."

Alec frowned up at the crazed woman as she came to stand by the side of his table again. "You've been drinking the Kool-Aid, haven't you," he deadpanned.

"Joke all you want, 494, but you were twinned for a reason. It was supposed to be your brother, Ben, you know. His gene sequence was designed to be paired with 452's. You were just the back up. Our safety net, if you will."

The transgenic rolled his eyes. "You really know how to make a guy feel special."

"But you _are _special." She cupped the side of his face to make sure she had his undivided attention, then stared into his gold-flecked green eyes. "We had high hopes for 493 when we saw how well he bonded with Max when they were children. But as we all know, your twin was defective and eventually had to be put down. At first, we were afraid the same flaw may have been infused with your DNA as well, so we sent you to psy-ops for six months of evaluation."

"Yeah, thanks for that…" Alec glared. It certainly wasn't a memory he was particularly fond of.

"Only after we recovered his body from the woods were we able to take him apart and find out where we went wrong."

Alec blinked up at her, gulping audibly at her words and trying not to reveal how much they affected him. When she pursed her lips in an almost pitying expression, he knew she had felt the tremor he had tried so hard to contain beneath her hand. She patted his cheek before running her hand up through his hair, enamored with the brain that lay just below the surface.

"Somehow, you managed to escape his fate." Her eyes connected with his once again and she paused as though waiting for some sort of response.

"Hey, don't look at me. You lost me at psy-ops."

To his great relief, she pulled away from him as if the magic of the moment had ended. "Regardless of why you succeeded where your twin failed, we weren't able to activate the dormant gene until 452 was recaptured, and even then, she wouldn't let you close enough to exhibit any results. We were debating on scrapping Sandeman's little side project in favor of going after Eyes Only, and then 452 burned down the facilities."

Now it was Alec's turn to smirk. "Didn't see that one comin', did ya."

"It was an inconvenience, but certainly not the game changer she was hoping for as you can see by Manticore's sister facility."

Alec glanced around the sparse medical room as if seeing it for the first time, though it was only for show as he had memorized it over two hours ago. "Yeah, it's got a great homey quality to it. Max is gonna love burnin' this place down too. She's been kinda bored lately so I hope you got insurance."

He felt a sense of satisfaction when the twitch in her jaw made it clear he had ruffled her feathers a bit. "My _point _is we had every intention of calling it quits on activating your psychic bond to 452 and then, when we least expected it, you showed your true colors. Fate is a fascinating thing, isn't it."

"If you say so." _For cryin' out loud, just shut up and kill me already, will you? I can't stand the monologuing…_

"Guess you couldn't outrun your destiny after all, could you, 494?" She grinned knowingly down at him and Alec had to look away. "A few months out on your own and you activated the sequence without our help. And instead of saving your own skin when she was recaptured, you turned yourself in because you are in love with your mate."

"As romantic as that sounds, you've got it all wrong. I owed her a solid, plain and simple. I don't know what kind of fairy tales you read as a kid, but me and Max ain't one of 'em. Hate to burst your bubble."

He watched warily as she picked up the needle from before and started to clean the inside of his left elbow with a cold cotton swab. "We'll find out soon enough." She jabbed the needle into his arm and he felt a slight burning sensation as the liquid entered his blood stream. "Time to reunite you with the psy-ops team, 494."

Alec paled instantly and his blood ran cold at the thought. "No…"

"I wouldn't fight the sedative if I were you."

DA-DA-DA

Logan watched sadly as Max paced the living room, practically wearing a hole into his floor. "Max, I want to get him out of there as much as you do, but we need a plan first. Is there anyone you can call for backup?"

"I don't think so. Zack was the one who knew where to find all of us. Syl and Krit would be my best choices, but I don't know how to track 'em down and we don't have time to waste lookin' for 'em."

"Okay, well what about Matt Sung and his team?"

Max scoffed. "They'll be dead before they even reach the front gate, no offense. This isn't some lowlife street gang, Logan. These guys will do whatever it takes to keep their government secrets out of the public eye, even if that means taking out a whole S.W.A.T. team."

"So, what then? I'm not seein' too many other options here, Max."

"I have to go in alone," she stated softly, her mind clearly made up already.

Logan immediately shook his head. "No. Not gonna happen. He risked his life to get you out of there, Max. You can't just hand yourself back over again and make his sacrifice pointless."

"They want me alive, but I don't know if I can say the same for Alec."

"And you think they'll just let him free once they've got you again?"

"Of course not. We have to make it a trade."

Logan rubbed at his forehead, trying to ward off an oncoming headache. "You realize how crazy this sounds, don't you?"

"I don't care. He may be a world-class jerk, but he's still family and I'm not gonna leave him there with them, even if I have to burn this place down too with him inside. That's our last resort though. If you can find me a back door to the place where I can slip in and slip out, then great. But if not, I'm gonna start workin' on my list of demands."

"Just give me some time, Max. I'll see what I can find."

"Clock's tickin'."

DA-DA-DA

The sedative wasn't meant to last long, especially considering how quickly a transgenic's system could burn it off. But it lasted long enough for Alec to be transferred from one room to another without him waking up en-route.

When Alec was finally able to get his eyelids to open again, his stomach immediately plummeted and a soft gasp escaped his lips. One room had haunted his dreams since he was a child and this was it. He was back in psy-ops, tethered to a padded chair, and reclined to a horribly vulnerable position.

The pieces of his ruined shirt had been removed completely and two thick straps crisscrossed over his bare chest like dual seatbelts. His wrists were strapped down to adjustable armrests, as were his knees and ankles. The dreaded laser pointer waited ominously a few feet in front of him, though it was thankfully off at the moment.

All cockiness and devil-may-care attitude went right out the window and he was full willing to start begging if only he could get his voice to cooperate. Unfortunately, the best he could do was stare up in horror as Renfro laid a hand on his shaking arm in a disturbingly mother-like gesture.

Alec was sure he was going to be sick. He swallowed a few times convulsively, his lips parted as he struggled to draw in air.

His chest felt constricted as if a five-ton elephant were sitting on his ribcage, and he was relatively sure the light-headed feeling was due to his heart-clenching fear as opposed to the dregs of the sedative leaving his system. Renfro's icy hand drew his attention down to his wrist as he reflexively tried to pull away from it.

"Good. You're awake. Last chance, 494. Tell us how the connection works or I'll have my team figure it out themselves. I can promise you it's not going to be fun if you choose option B."

Alec's jaw was trembling and his pupils were dilated to pinpoints as he struggled to find the words that would satisfy Renfro. "I… I dunno how it works. I swear. I can't control it."

"Pity. Believe it or not, I don't take any pleasure in hearing you scream."

"Please… Don't." He looked imploringly into her cold, soulless eyes and felt his heart stutter when no sympathy shone back at him.

Renfro lifted her gaze to a man who was approaching from the other side of the room. Alec hadn't noticed him before, but he was dressed in full scrubs and was the icing to top off his nightmare, right down to the mask and latex gloves.

"Start him on level three," Renfro ordered. "Force him to connect with 452 and give us her location. Call me when you've made some progress."

"Yes, ma'am," the scientist responded, tweaking some gauges on the machines surrounding Alec's body.

Renfro turned and left the room. The man peered down at Alec over the top of his mask and shook his head sadly. "It's a shame, really. Millions of dollars down the toilet because they'd rather fry your brains then find out what really makes it tick. A real shame."

As he spoke, he attached electrodes and monitoring sensors to Alec's chest and temples. Then he inserted an IV drip into the crook of his arm. He twisted a few more dials and flipped a handful of switches. Alec could do nothing but watch as the man worked around him, his mouth too dry to hold a conversation or attempt any witty distractions.

"You really don't know how to control your connection, do you?" the scientist asked, hoping the kid would spill now if he had been holding back so that he wouldn't have to go through with the experiment.

Alec shook his head dejectedly. "No. But even if I did, I wouldn't tell you," he rasped out with as much conviction as he could inflect into his words.

"Then you've brought this on yourself, 494." The man forced a mouth guard past Alec's dry lips. "Don't wanna risk you bitin' your tongue off before we get our answers, now do we? Brace yourself, kid."

Alec clenched his jaw shut on the rubber mouthpiece and tightened his grip on the armrests as the scientist flipped the last switch. Instead of the red light he was expecting to see, a blue beam shot from the pointer into his right eye.

At first, he felt a cool sensation against his lens, rather like putting eye drops in. But the cold quickly escalated to freezing and soon felt like someone had stabbed an icicle through his eye socket and into his brain as the laser pierced through his pupil and seared his nerve endings.

These guys took brain freeze to a whole new level. No matter how hard he tried to prevent it, Alec began to scream.

TBC

I am extremely sorry for the wait on this one guys! I've had a lot going on lately and then I couldn't get my brain to focus. Hope it was worth the wait, and I'd definitely appreciate any reviews you care to send my way! More to come.


	7. Whatever It Takes

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Time's up, Logan. What's the plan," Max demanded three hours later. There was a growing pain behind her eyes that she was starting to suspect had more to do with Alec than anything. They had waited long enough.

"The best route I can find is through the sewer system, Max," Logan confessed and Max rolled her eyes.

"Of course it is. You know, I might as well just move down there considering all the quality time we spend together these days..."

"There's just one problem."

Max scoffed. "Just one?"

"Well, one major problem anyway," Logan rephrased. "The grate on the other side is made of enforced steel. Even with your super-strength, I doubt you'll be able to get through it."

"Ye of little faith," Max teased.

"I'm serious, Max. Look at this thing. I'm sure they've considered the thought of transgenics taking the sub route in and out before. This grate has been designed specifically to keep that from happening. These guys don't mess around."

Max sighed as she stared at the metal structure over Logan's shoulder. "There's someone who might be able to get through. Someone they hadn't been preparing against."

"Care to share?"

"I'm gonna go pay Joshua a visit. Check you later."

DA-DA-DA

Alec coughed feebly as the scientist removed his mouth guard in order to give him a chance to confess before the next round. His throat was on fire from screaming and his mouth was so dry, his lips had cracked and started to bleed.

"Water?" the exhausted transgenic croaked desperately.

"Bad idea," the man responded. "After we upgrade to the next level, you'll just throw it back up anyway."

Alec groaned in disappointment and turned his head away from the scientist. It was the closest he could get to solitude considering the situation he was in. On a semi-positive note, his head was throbbing so badly now that he could barely feel the pain in his shoulder anymore.

He had just been put through level five and they were already considering testing him at level six. He didn't think he could take anymore. The only reason they had cut him any slack in between was the fact that his vitals were all over the charts and, had they pressed any further, he would have passed out for the third time since they had started this little venture.

If there was anything Renfro disapproved of, it was wasting valuable time, and having to stop the experiment in favor of reviving 494 was a perfect example of just that. Had he not been such a mess, Alec would have gloated at the fact he was responsible for pissing the old lady off. But as it was, all he could think of was passing out again if only to get a momentary respite from the agony he was in.

The man easily turned Alec's head towards him again and shined a small penlight into his eyes, ratcheting up the pain another notch, as he made sure there was no permanent damage being done. Yet.

Then he listened to the transgenic's heart which was practically beating out of his chest. The scientist frowned and Alec let his eyes drift closed while that option was still available to him. It only half registered in his brain when he heard the man walk away and pick up the room phone.

"Madame Renfro, it's Dr. Bradbury. 494's vitals have not recovered sufficiently enough from the last round to attempt the next. In my professional opinion, if we press farther right now, he is going to flat line. If you want your answers, I suggest we let him rest for an hour or so before moving to level six."

_That _caught Alec's attention. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or frustrated by the news though. At this point, he would just as soon jump to the next level and put himself out of his misery. No more pain, no matter what they did to him. He was so close to blissful ignorance and they wouldn't even give him that.

"Understood. I'll have him escorted back to his cell." Bradbury hung up the phone. "Congratulations, 494. You've earned yourself a brief reprieve." The man walked over to the door and knocked twice, then stood back as four armed guards entered.

"Put him back in his cage," he instructed the men and they all approached Alec at once. The transgenic wearily cracked his eyes open and registered the fact that the doc was peeling all the electrodes from his body.

His arms and legs were then released, followed by the belts across his chest. He was free. If only he had the strength to do anything about it. He didn't even put up a struggle as the guards jerked him off of the exam chair by the arms and dragged him out the door, his legs sliding limply over the immaculate floor.

Alec had a terrible case of déjà vu as he watched the torture room slowly disappear from sight while he was manhandled down the hallway and around a corner. His chin fell to his chest when he no longer had the strength to hold his head up, and the next thing he knew, he was being deposited rather carelessly onto the cage floor.

Apparently it was asking too much to be placed on the cot instead, although, all things considered, the cot wasn't much more comfortable than where he was now anyway. He stared up at the boring ceiling, mainly because he didn't have the energy to do anything else, and even the _idea_ of moving to a more forgiving position made him want to whimper and throw up.

Needless to say, he wasn't going anywhere of his own accord anytime soon. He was just about to drift off into the beckoning darkness when a familiar voice jolted him back to awareness.

"Hey, Pretty Boy, whatcha in for?"

Alec rolled his head to the side and saw a trans-human looking down at him with a cigar dangling from his lizard-like lips. "Jeez, kid. You look like crap."

"Mole?" Alec exclaimed, a frown marring his features as he wondered if the laser treatments had really done a number on his brain. "What the hell are you doin' here?" he croaked.

Judging by the fact that Mole was standing outside of the line of cages and held a gun in his hands, he had been sent in to guard Alec until the scientist came back to collect him.

"I was out on assignment when you kitties burned the other homeland down. Was told to report back here. If I had known what was goin' on, I would've gone someplace sunny instead for some much needed R&R, but I guess I missed the memo. Never thought _your_ ass would be dumb enough to get caught again though."

Alec sighed. "Long story."

"They usually are. But hell, I've got time, and it doesn't look like you're gonna be makin' a mad dash for the exit in the near future either."

"I owed someone a favor," Alec responded simply.

"Damn. She must be hot."

Alec arched an eyebrow at him. The trans-human shrugged back.

"Just sayin', pal. You've never been the type to risk your hide for someone else. Hell, none of us are."

The beaten transgenic dropped his gaze. "Guess I'm a changed man then." Alec remembered exactly when all of that had changed. He had been a mindless killing machine until the day he met Rachel Berrisford. She had broken through his primal defenses and showed him what it felt like to love someone.

He risked his own life to try and save her, but Manticore completed his assassination mission for him and then attempted to stamp all emotion out of him via reindoctrination. But he clung to the memory of Rachel during the torture, which allowed him to keep his humanity, and he stubbornly refused to allow them to turn him back into a true blue soldier.

Alec buried his pain to survive and put on the performance of a lifetime over the next few years, nearly convincing everyone, including himself, that he was a selfish jerk who cared about no one and nothing unless it directly affected his own existence.

Then he met Max, and in a way, she reminded him of Rachel. As much as he pretended her opinion of him didn't matter, he was terrified of letting her down; of being a useless failure to her.

And now here he was, getting his heroic ass tortured, and Max probably couldn't have cared less. More than likely, she had run back to Logan's arms and they were now celebrating the fact that Alec would never interfere with their lives again. The thought made him wonder why he was fighting so hard against the reindoctrination process in the first place.

Mole's derisive snort brought Alec out of his musings. "No one changes _that_ drastically without a reason."

"Just drop it, Mole." It was bad enough Alec had to deal with the physical pain his body was enduring without adding emotional torture to the picture. He hoped the words sounded more like an order rather than a desperate plea.

"Come on, you can tell me," Mole goaded, clearly missing the hidden warning in Alec's tone to back off. "Did you knock her up or somethin'? Tryin' to protect your unborn brat?"

Him and Max having a kid together… That'll be the day. "I said _drop_ it." Alec barked, shooting a glare in the lizard-man's direction and Mole held his hands up in a mock gesture of surrender.

"Okay, okay… Who pissed in your C-rations?"

"I have to get outta here, Mole," Alec stated, quickly changing the topic. He forced his shaking shoulders to support him as he propped himself up onto his elbows. "Can you help me?"

"Hate to break it to ya, Pretty Boy, but your ass ain't gonna make it past the perimeter in the state it's currently in. You must've really pissed off the higher-ups this time."

"Story of my life," he groaned, the strength leaving him, and he slumped back down onto the floor. Mole was right; he was going nowhere fast.

"Get some rest, sweet cheeks. I'll watch your back as long as I can."

Alec would have made a joke about how pervy that sounded, but he was too grateful to make light of his old friend's words. Instead, he took what little comfort he could from the promise and, for the first time since his capture, he felt a slight sense of hope that not all was lost just yet.

DA-DA-DA

"Joshua?" Max called out as she entered the half-dog/half-human's home. "Joshua, I need your help!"

The friendly giant of a trans-human quickly appeared from the back room, one of Father Sandeman's old books in his large hands. "Little fella in trouble?"

"No, actually. Medium fella in trouble, as usual. Long story short, Manticore is still out there and they've got Alec."

Joshua growled angrily. "Max and Joshua bring Alec home." He slammed the book down on the nearest table for emphasis.

"That's the plan, big fella," Max confirmed with a small smirk playing at her lips. "We're goin' after him tonight. Hopefully he can hold out till then." _If not…_

Her face fell again as she contemplated the alternative.

DA-DA-DA

Ames White strode confidently into the Manticore facility to report his latest statistics on the transgenic round-up/slaughter. All in all, it had been a good day. Three more X-5s dead as well as five trans-humans, and two X-7s were brought back for evaluation. If they still responded to orders, they would be reinstated at the new building.

To top it all off, he had gotten wind of the fact that X5-494 had given himself up and was currently residing in one of the cells. White made his way to Renfro's office and she turned to greet him as he opened the door, having watched his approach on the security monitors.

"Good to see you as always, Ames. I'm assuming you have an update for me?"

"That I do," he replied, handing over his file folder. He waited patiently as Renfro perused it.

"Excellent work, but we've still got a long way to go."

"Rumor has it we can cross 494 off the list as well," he hedged, a smirk giving away how much satisfaction he found in those words.

"For once, the rumors are correct. We're in the process of breaking him. He knows where 452 is but he's being tight-lipped about it. I also have reason to believe he is one of your father's more important creations. We're just looking for a way to prove it."

"I see. If I may suggest, Madame… I have experience cracking transgenics and wouldn't mind having a go at it. 494 and I have some history together."

She considered his proposal carefully, then nodded. "I need results and I need him alive. Other than that, you have free reign with 494."

White gave a slight bow of gratitude. "Thank you, Madame Renfro. I will get you your answers, whatever it takes."

TBC

Please review! I had a request from a reader to let White have some time with Alec so hopefully the next chapter will fulfill your wishes. Any other requests out there, please let me know and I'll see what I can do!


	8. The Agony of Defeat

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

As promised, Mole stood vigil by his fallen friend's cell, occasionally glancing over his shoulder at Alec to make sure he was still breathing. They really did a number on him, but at least he was semi-coherent this time around.

He roused 494 long enough to drink a cup of water he had snuck in for the young transgenic, but then Alec fell right back into a restless sleep. Soft groans of pain slipped past the boys lips every once in a while, his defenses laid open while unconscious.

As much as he pretended to be a hardened soldier, the sounds stabbed at Mole's heart. The kid behind him had been put through the ringer multiple times by Manticore thanks to his twin's psychotic episodes. Mole had only been there to witness _some_ of the tortures Alec had endured, but 494 always seemed to bounce back and assume his cocky and good-humored nature shortly after.

It was as if nothing could touch the guy, mainly because Alec refused to let anything break him. That's what Mole admired most about the transgenic. He had his doubts that the kid would be bouncing back as easily this time around though.

Mole watched as Alec's head tossed from side to side on the cold and hard concrete floor, his brow furrowed in pain and a whimper cut through the otherwise silent room. Whether it was due to the physical agony his body had been subjected to, or if it was brought on by the nightmare-inducing memories that no doubt plagued his dreams, Mole didn't know.

What he _did _know was that the kid had gone through all of this suffering over a _girl_. He didn't catch a name during their earlier chat session, but whoever she was, he hoped she understood and appreciated the sacrifice 494 had made.

Then again, Pretty Boy was always a softy when it came to the females. Apparently, he hadn't learned his lesson from the last reindoctrination session… When would he understand that women were nothing but trouble?

Mole's head jerked towards the door as he heard urgent voices approaching from the hallway. "Look alive, brother," he warned just loud enough to reach Alec's ears. "We've got company." He knew when 494 was conscious again without turning to check because Alec's breathing had changed.

The kid groaned again, this time due to the bright over-head lights that immediately pierced through his blown pupils as he forced his eyes to open. Alec blocked the glare with his right forearm until his sleep-deprived eyes had time to adjust.

As much as Mole hated waking the guy who so desperately needed the rest, it was better than leaving him looking helpless and broken when they came for him again. If a soldier goes down, it's with his head held high and proud; not with his tail between his legs or passed out on the floor, completely unaware of his impending fate. He deserved a fighting chance.

"Has it been an hour already?" Alec mumbled in confusion, his sleep-addled and aching brain attempting to catch up to what was going on. He lowered his arm and used that same elbow to prop himself up enough to shoot a look towards the door. He could hear the footsteps approaching now too.

"Not for another twenty minutes," Mole responded, wondering what was so damn important that it couldn't wait just a bit longer. He wanted to know who had the pull around here and why they suddenly demanded an alteration to the original plans. There was only one way to find out. He stood at attention and waited patiently.

After signing the proper paperwork out in the hallway, Ames White stormed into the room and his beady eyes immediately locked onto Alec. 494 had just barely managed to slide his weakened body backwards and was now resting his bare back against the bars at the far end of his cell, his jean-clad legs sprawled in front of him.

Grinning like a cat that had just eaten the canary, White took a step towards the cage only to find himself face-to-face with some sort of large lizard creature. He glared up at it in annoyance. "Is there a problem?"

"Orders are to leave the prisoner undisturbed for an hour, _sir_," Mole drawled around the cigar in his mouth, taking great pleasure in making the last word sound condescending. "He is not allowed to have visitors for at least another eighteen minutes." Okay, so the plume of smoke that had just been blown into Ames' face may not have been entirely accidental…

"Your _orders_ have changed," White shot back, ignoring the hovering smoke cloud. "Now step aside unless you wish to join him."

Mole glared down at the man, trying to look as menacing as possible. So what if he got himself court marshaled for insubordination? Knocking this punk down a few pegs would totally be worth it.

"Stand down, Mole," Alec sighed wearily. He loved the guy for trying, but he wasn't about to let the trans-human get in trouble just for trying to prolong the inevitable. "He's not worth it."

White smirked as the _thing _in front of him obediently moved aside, though it remained tense and alert just in case it saw reason to act. Quite the little watchdog, really.

Stepping up to the door of the cell, Ames stared haughtily down at his foe. "You know, when I first heard you had turned yourself in, I didn't believe it."

"I like being unpredictable," Alec stated with a slight shrug. "It's part of my charm." He forced a smirk of his own, though in all honesty, smiling was the last thing he felt like doing right now. White didn't have to know that though.

"What happened, 494? Couldn't take bein' in the real world any longer? You always were defective…" Judging by the predatory glare the transgenic sent him, Ames had hit a nerve with that one. He chuckled. "Let me guess, you felt the sudden urge to practice amateur dentistry like your crazy twin and decided you needed to be back under Manticore control, where you belong."

"Wow, Ames. You got me all figured out, don'tcha? They should give you a raise. I reckon a brain like yours is worth at _least_… fifty cents."

Mole snorted, earning a scowl from White. As if he cared what the short human thought of him. White turned his attention back to Alec, intent on wiping the smirk off his face.

"Considering how easily you seem to evade death these days, you have no idea how badly I want to put a bullet directly between your eyes and end things right here and now."

Mole took a threatening step forward, ready to intervene if White even _attempted_ to carry out his threat, but the man held up a placating hand and continued to speak rather than reach for a gun.

"However, the higher-ups seem to want you alive. So instead, I guess I'll just have to take pleasure in drawing out your pain and suffering. But make no mistake, 494. One day, I _will _kill you, and I'll enjoy every second of it."

DA-DA-DA

Logan parked his van next to the first manhole cover they came across within a mile radius of the Manticore compound. He glanced up into his rearview mirror, seeing the attentive faces of Max and Joshua staring back at him.

"This is as good an entrance as any. Remember, if you can't get past the grate, come back and we'll find an alternate plan. Don't do anything stupid that'll get you both caught."

"I got it, Logan," Max responded shortly. She was getting Alec out of there one way or another, whether Logan approved of her methods or not. He didn't understand what Manticore did to guys like Alec. Every second counted. "You ready, big fella?"

"Ready," Joshua replied in his thick dog-boy accent. They climbed out of the van and Joshua removed the heavy metal cover with ease. Max glanced back at Logan, studying him in case it was the last time they ever saw each other.

Logan seemed to understand what she was thinking, the pain and sadness easy to read in her eyes. "I'll be waiting right here when you get back," he stated confidently.

Max nodded, then followed her giant of a friend into the stinking sewer, pulling the cover back over the hole as she went.

DA-DA-DA

White had his team come in and drag Alec from his cell. As he was escorted past an apologetic looking Mole, the trans-human quietly said, "Don't let 'em win, kid. Fight with everything you've got and give 'em hell."

Alec felt his spirits lift a little at his friend's words. If he was going down, he was taking a few of these assholes with him. He just had to gather some strength back and wait for the right opportunity to strike. This was definitely not it.

Regardless, he instinctively put on the brakes when he saw that they were dragging him back to psy-ops, but White's breeding cult flunkies were stronger than he was on a good day and this certainly didn't qualify.

"Get 'im in the chair," Ames ordered his lackeys who immediately obeyed.

Alec struggled just long enough to realize that the effort was futile. He was bound- arms, legs, and chest- to the chair in ten seconds flat. He clenched his fists to hide the uncontrollable shaking and set his jaw, mentally preparing himself for round two.

Just because he wasn't strong enough to fight them yet, it didn't mean he was going to give them the satisfaction of hearing him beg. Not this time. Not to White.

The now familiar scientist came slinking across the floor from a side room, an eyebrow raised at the men he didn't recognize. "What's going on? Who are you people?"

"Agent Ames White, and I'm taking over 494's interrogation. Your assistance is no longer required."

"Are you familiar with this equipment?" the smaller man questioned.

"Not yet, but I'm looking forward to the tutorial. How hard can it be, right?"

"I really don't think you should be handling this stuff if you haven't been properly trained. With the wrong settings or time frames, you could cause irreparable damage!"

"Wouldn't that be a tragedy…" Ames smirked, clearly excited by the idea.

The scientist looked between White and Alec, his face growing paler by the second. "Madame Renfro is not going to like…"

"Thank you, doctor. My men will see you out."

That was clearly the end of the conversation. The man gave one last nervous look at 494 before departing, not wanting any involvement if something went horribly wrong. White's men stayed just outside the door to prevent anyone from interrupting.

Ames walked nonchalantly over to Alec and smiled down at him. "Alone at last, 494. How ever shall we pass the time?"

"I'm guessin' a good old-fashioned game of pool is out of the question?"

"Tempting, but I've got a better idea. How about we have ourselves a little light show?" Reaching up, he positioned the laser in front of Alec's right eye and the transgenic felt his heart rate immediately pick up.

Thankfully, Ames hadn't thought to attach the monitors to his chest or Alec would have been embarrassed at how easily the small beam of light could scare the living hell out of him.

"Let's see now…" White took in all the knobs and switches on the control board before making a few adjustments. "I think level eight could move things along quite nicely. Don't you agree?"

Alec's nails were cutting into his palms. In his head, he was keeping up a mantra of _stay strong_, and _don't give him the satisfaction._

"Feel free to divulge the information Renfro wants at any time. No rush though."

"I'm not tellin' you anythin'," Alec growled.

White smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that. Hit it, Otto!"

As obedient as ever, Ames' right hand man stepped forward and flipped the last switch. White stood directly behind 494, holding his head in place with his left elbow under Alec's chin, practically in a choke-hold, then used the fingers of his right hand to force the transgenic's eye open.

Alec felt the ice, then the fire slice into his head instantly. There was no slow transition, and no time to fortify himself for the pain. He pulled desperately against his restraints, bruising and eventually cutting through his skin.

His body began to convulse as it was forced to endure levels of torture for which it hadn't been designed to withstand, and then the images started to flood past his vision. It was almost like he was a fly on the wall, watching his rescue attempt unfold.

Max was slinking her way through a sewer tunnel. Joshua was a few steps ahead of her. They made a turn and continued down a connected route. He could hear the sounds of soldiers training in the distance. She was underneath the Manticore grounds!

_Damn it, Max! You weren't supposed to come back!_ he thought heatedly. His sacrifice had been for nothing. She was going to get caught, and they would both be experimented on or killed, neither of which was a pleasant thought. He pulled himself back to the here and now, preferring to face the laser rather than Max's imminent capture.

Realizing that 494 was resisting the treatment, White nodded to Otto who reluctantly turned the dial to level nine. Alec screamed, and in a weird out-of-body sort of experience, he heard his own cry echo through the tunnels and watched Joshua turn horrified eyes to Max.

"Alec. They hurt him," he practically whimpered.

_Max swallowed hard with a nod. "I know, big fella. But we're gonna get him out. Come on. It came from this way." She continued down the tunnel, Joshua plodding along obediently behind her._

Alec's head was hurting so badly, he was sure his eyes had started to bleed. Then again, it could just be tears flowing down his cheeks. Either way, he knew it wasn't good. _Please, Max… Make it stop._

White wrenched another scream from him when he dialed it up to ten. He began to convulse harder, his muscles screaming just as loudly in protest.

Max turned another corner and picked up her pace, jogging towards her entrance into Manticore. They were getting close. He could sense her anxiousness.

"Hang on, Alec. We're coming," she stated softly, offering it up as a silent prayer as opposed to expecting him to actually hear her. But he did hear the words, and he clung to them like a lifeline.

Then Alec literally felt something snap inside his mind and, though he didn't think it was possible, the agony increased exponentially. He was sure his brain had hemorrhaged.

_Make it stop, make it stop, MAKE IT STOP!_

"_Alec?" Max faltered for a moment, throwing out a hand to steady herself against the tunnel wall as she came to a stop, Joshua nearly barreling into her from behind._

The images in Alec's head seemed to shift and now instead of seeing Max, he was seeing through her eyes. And unless he was very much mistaken, he could now also hear her thoughts. Talk about trippy…

_Max?_ he thought back in response, willing the connection to work. He needed her to hear him, now more than ever. _Please help me! I can't take this anymore!_

_Joshua laid a hand on Max's shoulder in concern. "You alright, little fella?"_

_Max turned to look up at Joshua who appeared to be as confused as she was. "Did you hear that?"_

_Joshua tilted his head, trying to figure out what she was talking about. "Alec screaming?"_

"_No, I swear I just heard him say something…"_

Alec focused harder and it felt like his entire body was on fire. White's arm tightened around his throat to keep Alec's head steady as he thrashed against his bonds. It was getting increasingly harder to breathe.

"Kill it," White stated calmly to Otto, and for one heart-stopping moment, Alec thought he was done for, but then the machine shut down. Ames released the twitching transgenic and then leaned over him until he could look Alec in the eye. "Ready to spill your secrets yet?" he asked as if he couldn't care less if Alec said no.

Alec blinked furiously to clear his vision but he couldn't see White. He couldn't see _anything_ aside from a large metal grate that now stood between Max and the first level of the Manticore facility. He clenched his eyes shut in defeat, more tears running down his face as he did so.

So close, and yet so far. There was no way Max could get past that thing and Alec knew it. His momentary surge of hope for a rescue was now gone, leaving an empty ache in his heart. There was no reason left to fight.

"Max…" he breathed out in a grieving whimper. "'m sorry."

Then his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he collapsed limply against the padded chair, convulsions still coursing through his tormented body.

TBC

Please review! Plenty more to come.


	9. Distractions

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

He was gone. The connection had ended as quickly as it had come, and now she couldn't feel Alec anymore. It left an aching hole in her heart that she had only experienced a few times in her entire life. It felt… It felt like the day she held Ben's broken body in her arms, knowing it was her own fault that she would never see his handsome smile again.

No. She wasn't going to let that happen. Not this time. Alec was going to pull through this, and she was going to save him. Max and Joshua bring Alec home. That was the plan.

Max gave the metal grate an experimental tug, then stood aside and let her friend take over. "You're up, big guy. See if you can slap an exit sign on this thing."

"Alec in there?" Joshua questioned with a jerk of his head towards the hallway on the other side of their enclosure.

"Yeah, Josh. Alec's in there."

Joshua's lip curled in hatred at the people who hurt his friend. "Stand back, little fella." He slid his long fingers through the mesh-like holes, getting a firm grip on the grate. Then he gave a colossal yank. The metal groaned, but remained in place.

Max's heart stuttered. They had to get through. They just had to. "Try again."

Joshua nodded, took a moment to gather all the strength he possessed, and with an almighty bellow, he ripped the grate right out of the wall, plaster and bits of metal scattering everywhere.

Max let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. They were through! But unfortunately, they had made so much commotion in the process that there was no way their break-in had gone unnoticed. "We have to hurry, big fella. Let's go."

They slid out of the tunnel and onto the bright white floor of Manticore. She tried to reach out to Alec mentally- to rebuild their connection and get a location on him- but there was nothing. _Guess we'll have to find him the old fashioned way…_ Last time she had seen him, he was in the cellblock. She turned right and headed down the hall.

Joshua immediately grabbed onto her arm, bringing her to an abrupt halt. She turned back to him questioningly. "What is it, Josh?"

His nose was in the air and he was sniffing deeply, apparently having caught onto a familiar scent. "Alec. This way." He began pulling her in the opposite direction of the cells. They were now headed towards the medical rooms, and psy-ops.

Max felt like she was going to be sick. Even if he was still alive after the reindoctrination process, odds were he was no longer the smart alec he used to be. What if they had turned him into a cold-hearted killer again? No. Alec was too strong for that. He'd die before taking another innocent life.

But what if they didn't _let_ him die? The thought hit her in the stomach like a ton of bricks. What if they hooked him up to a ton of machines and harvested his organs? _Oh, god… Alec. _No. She wasn't going to let that happen either.

She steeled her resolve. Those were bridges she'd have to cross later. She had come this far and there was no way she was leaving here without Alec, dead or alive. She wouldn't allow these vultures to turn him into another walking, talking robot like they had done to Zack. She owed Alec that much, at the very least.

"Lead the way, Joshua."

They had made it down two corridors before they walked headlong into a lizard-human who was smoking a cigar and carrying a gun. Max took a quick step backwards in surprise and Joshua snarled, beyond ready for a fight.

Mole brought his gun up, training it on Joshua. "Hold it, Fido."

"Wait! Don't shoot," Max half pleaded, half demanded.

The trans-human glared at her. "Give me one good reason, Sweetheart."

"How about the fact that we're practically family?" He didn't seem to be impressed, judging by the fact that the gun was now aimed at her instead of Joshua. She huffed in annoyance, then tried again. "Listen, we're only here to take back what's ours, not to cause any trouble."

"Do I look like I was grown in a test tube yesterday?"

"The name's Max. I'm an X-5, and this is Joshua. He's one of your kind."

"I ain't blind, Sister. You wanna tell me why you're breakin' in here? Or should I just pull the trigger and be done with it so I can go get some lunch?"

Max took a moment to size the soldier up. He didn't act like a true blue soldier, anxious to turn them in for some half-hearted praise from the higher-ups. More like he was irritated by their unexpected interruption during his rounds. He didn't want to be here, and more importantly, he didn't respect the rules of Manticore. Otherwise he would have raised the alarms by now.

Something deeper in Max's gut told her she could trust this guy. She didn't know why she felt that way but she didn't bother second-guessing it. What other options did they have at this point anyway?

"We're on a rescue mission."

Mole quirked an eyebrow at her. "Come again?"

"One of our kind was taken in against his will, and we're here to bring Alec back home."

"Alec?" He looked even more confused now than he did a minute ago. "Never heard of any…"

"X-5 494," she supplied.

His expression turned to one of recognition, quickly followed by one of sudden understanding. "You're Pretty Boy's new main squeeze?" He didn't bother waiting for her fumbled protests before lowering his gun. "Why the hell didn't you say so? Come on. I'll take you to him."

DA-DA-DA

Logan checked his watch impatiently. Max and Joshua should have gotten through the grate by now. He turned his attention back to his laptop. He had tapped into Manticore's camera feed again and as far as he could tell, no alarms had been sounded yet and the outer perimeter patrols never broke stride. So far, so good.

DA-DA-DA

"Hey!" White barked in Alec's face, slapping him hard on the cheek. "Wake up!" 494 didn't so much as twitch.

Otto shifted uncomfortably, still standing near the laser machine. "Sir, maybe we should take a break; give him some time to recover."

"He's not a little kid with the sniffles, Otto," White growled back, sounding annoyed. "He's a _soldier_, and this is an interrogation. We don't do 'breaks'." He paused, thinking through his next move. "Go get me that scientist. He aughtta know how to revive this thing."

"Yes, sir." Begrudgingly, Otto headed off in search of the little man they had kicked out of the room less than half an hour ago. Sometimes he really hated his job.

DA-DA-DA

Mole glanced over at Max who was barely a half step behind him as they made their way towards psy-ops. There was still a lot he didn't understand, and this was probably his only chance to get some answers.

"You're 452, aren't you." It wasn't really a question. One plus one tended to equal two. Max nodded distractedly, more intent on finding Alec than on getting acquainted with Mole. The trans-human continued his train of thought. "White brought you in recently for Renfro, didn't he?"

Max shot him a wary look, wondering what he was getting at. "What's it to you?"

"Just wonderin' how Pretty Boy got himself recaptured, but now it's startin' to make sense. He came here to rescue your pretty ass and got screwed over in the process, am I right?"

Max dropped her gaze to the ground, feeling the familiar pang of guilt again. "He should've just left me here. I would've found another way out eventually."

"And yet, you're doin' the same damn thing for him right now. How's that for irony?"

She immediately switched from guilty to defensive. "It's my fault he's in here and I wasn't about to just walk away and let them torture him in my place."

"Huh." Mole sounded surprised.

Max quirked an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"Maybe I was wrong about you after all."

She shrugged. "Stranger things have happened." They paused at the last turn, listening for any activity. There were three sets of hurried footsteps heading their way from the other side of the corridor.

Max stole a quick look around the corner and immediately recognized two of them. Renfro was leading the way, looking very pissed off, and she was being trailed by White's right-hand man and a short guy in a lab coat who she assumed was one of Manticore's scientists.

She used hand signals to warn Mole and Joshua who nodded their understanding. They waited with bated breath until the three newcomers disappeared into the psy-ops room.

DA-DA-DA

Renfro shoved the door open and strode inside, her fiery eyes immediately searching out White. When their gazes met, Ames locked his jaw and pursed his lips into a thin line. He knew he was screwed.

"What have you done?" Renfro demanded.

"I've made progress," White responded simply.

"Explain."

"I have reason to believe this transgenic managed to make contact with 452 before he passed out. Isn't that what you wanted?"

"Not at the expense of killing him. I told you, I need 494 alive." Renfro moved to Alec's side and placed two fingers against his carotid artery, frowning as she felt the rapid speed of his pulse.

"I assure you, Madame, he is still very much alive, as you've just verified for yourself. Now if your scientist can wake him up, I am willing to bet my career on the fact that you will get your answers."

"Good, because your _career_ is exactly what's on the line," she barked back, then motioned for the scientist to approach and see what he could do to remedy the situation.

The small man lifted each of Alec's eyelids, using his penlight to gauge the amount of damage done. "What setting did you use on him?" he asked of White.

"Level ten, I believe."

The scientist blanched at him. "T-ten? X-5s weren't designed to withstand anything past level six!" He started bustling around Alec's body much faster, checking his vitals and for any physical injuries the high level could have inflicted.

"You wanted results, I got you them. I don't see what the problem is here," White growled, starting to feel very unappreciated. "With all due respect, Madame, you gave me free reign with 494 as long as I didn't kill him, and I did exactly what you asked of me."

"Yes, Ames, but if he doesn't wake up, then he's just as good as dead. The same applies if he is beyond repair. I wanted results. Not a vegetable."

The scientist listened to Alec's wildly beating heart and sighed. "I'm afraid all we can do at this point is wait and hope he pulls through."

DA-DA-DA

Max, Mole, and Joshua listened intently for a few moments, waiting to see if there would be anyone else coming. When the coast seemed to be clear, she addressed her small team.

"We have to assume there are more than those three in there, but we have no idea how many we're up against," Max confessed, stating the obvious. "There could be a handful, or there could be a whole Army."

"I don't know about _you_, Sister, but _one_ of us could find out… You know, considering that I live here and all," Mole retorted. "I'll see what I can do to draw them away."

"You should come with us," she tried, knowing she was fighting a losing battle but she had to at least put the idea out there.

Mole snorted. "And go where? I've seen the news and heard the reports. Trans-humans are bein' taken down left and right out there. We don't exactly blend in."

"Outside people afraid of what they don't understand," Joshua supplied.

"You can lay low," Max insisted. "Josh has been doin' just fine and plenty of others have too. I'm just saying, you shouldn't have to keep doing Manticore's bidding if you don't want to. We can all get out together."

"That wouldn't be much of a distraction, now would it? Look, just get Princess out and patched up, and when he's back on his feet, tell him he owes me a crap-load of cigars." Without another word, Mole turned the corner and headed for the psy-ops door. He knocked, then entered.

"What is it?" Renfro demanded, taking some of her anger out on Mole.

"Madame, security has just confirmed that 452 is in the building."

TBC

Time for all Hell to break loose… haha Please review!


	10. Plans In Action

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Madame, security has just confirmed that 452 is in the building," Mole announced, doing his best to keep his eyes locked on Renfro's when all he wanted to do was check on his friend; His friend who was currently laying motionless in a chair, unconscious or, quite possibly, dead. Mole gritted his teeth and continued. "How do you wish to proceed?"

Renfro turned to White. "Find her and bring her to me, Ames. _Unharmed_," she added when she saw the glint of malice in his eyes.

"Understood," White confirmed. "Otto, round up the team. 452 will _not_ be slipping through our fingers again."

"Yes, sir." Otto strode from the room, glad to have an assignment that didn't involve torture.

White hung back a moment. "Madame Renfro, may I speak freely?"

Renfro held up a finger and turned her attention to Mole instead. "You. Get back to the security center and find out how she managed to make it this far without being detained. If there is a hole in our security, I want it found so this never happens again. Go."

Mole gave a half bow and then turned on his heel and marched back out of the room. White waited a couple extra seconds, knowing how superior a trans-human's hearing could be, then looked to Renfro. She nodded at him, giving him permission to speak.

"You know why she's here, right?"

"Of course." Renfro placed her hand possessively on Alec's over-heated chest. "But she's not going to take him from me this time. Not now that we're so close."

"What if I could provide you with a third option?"

Renfro raised her eyebrows at him. "Meaning?"

"A trifecta. Much as I hate the thought of letting this transgenic filth back on the street, I guarantee 452 will be leaning on Eyes Only for help. It's a risk, granted. But if we tag 494 and allow 452 to rescue him, we can collect all three of them when they least expect it."

Renfro glanced down at her unconscious captive. Max was clearly on a suicide mission and had very little chance of getting out of here without help. Renfro could be content with 452 and 494 in her collection, and there was no limit to the tests she could run once the pair of them were together again.

On the other hand, Eyes Only has been a thorn in Manticore's side for years and if there was any way to break 452's spirit, it would be with the capture and eventual demise of her cyber boyfriend. The idea had merit. Still, she could lose all three if something goes wrong and end up right back at the start, empty-handed. And even if they did tag 494, it wouldn't buy them much time.

"They'll check his body for tracking devices as soon as they're in a safe location, Ames. They'll simply cut it out of his skin like X5-599 did while he was on the run."

"They'll look for puncture marks, that's true," White smirked. "But I have a better idea."

DA-DA-DA

Checking up and down the corridor, Mole made his way back towards Max. He intentionally cleared his throat to give her a head's up that he was coming. It was common sense that you didn't want to take a fellow soldier by surprise.

As soon as he turned the corner, she began barraging him with questions.

"Well? What's going on in there? How many are we up against? Can Alec move on his own? What've they done to him?"

Mole rolled his eyes. "If you shut up for one damn minute, I'll give you the low down." Max scowled but fell silent, which Mole took as his cue to continue. "I don't know what the hell they've done to him, but he ain't goin' anywhere fast. Right now, there are only three people in that room aside from Pretty Boy; Renfro, White, and Dr. Bradbury. White's gonna be comin' out soon to look for you, which only leaves the two…"

Max held up a hand half a second before cutting Mole's monologue off. "Hold up, they know we're here?"

"Hey, you wanted a distraction. I gave you one."

Max gripped Mole's jacket sleeve and yanked him in close enough to hiss, "You _told _them?"

Mole appeared unfazed. "Did you have a better idea?"

"Oh, I dunno… Maybe something a little further from the _truth_? This place is gonna be crawling with White's men soon thanks to you!"

Mole jerked out of Max's grip having heard enough of her complaints. "Time's tickin' then. Hope you've got an escape plan."

"Only so long as White and his cronies don't find it first!"

"Listen, Sister, you wanted me to clear the room and that's exactly what I did. That Renfro lady has a creepy obsession with your boy toy in there, as does White, and the only thing that would draw them away from their prized possession is you. So I improvised."

"Right… And savin' your own ass had nothin' to do with it," she drawled sarcastically.

"Excuse me for bein' a bit selfish here," Mole growled, "but considering the fact that I'm probably gonna be the fall guy when you kitties bust out, I've gotta look out for myself here too. Bringin' water to 494 against their orders was bad enough, but gettin' caught for lying and subterfuge will get me a first class ticket to the reindoctrination chair, and that's not exactly the vacation I had in mind so cut me some slack!"

"Not his fault, Little Fella," Joshua stated with a warm hand on Max's shoulder. He tilted his head slightly to the right. "Quiet now. White's coming."

Max peered around the corner and, sure enough, she saw White emerge from the room, drying his hands on a towel as he strode briskly down the corridor to catch up with his team.

"It's now or never, Max," Mole whispered to her. "Get 'im outta there. I'll do what I can to hold them off."

Realizing they were in fact on the same team, Max's anger fizzled out and she nodded to the trans-human. "Thank you. Be careful."

"You too. Watch your sixes."

Mole clapped Joshua on the back, then turned and disappeared down the hallway. Max signaled to Josh that they were moving forward. Seconds later, she was busting through the door, a snarling dog-boy on her heels.

Her heart skipped a few beats when she saw Renfro standing over a half-naked and bound Alec, dabbing at his slightly stubbled chin with yet another towel. Max could see his skin glistening from the other side of the room.

It was too cold in here for him to be sweating naturally, but between the torture he had no doubt been suffering recently and the fever that was attacking his system, she could hardly blame him.

Max felt her anger swell inside of her once again. "Get away from him."

"Or what exactly?" Renfro challenged with a sneer.

Max didn't miss a beat. "Or you're gonna piss off my friend here," she stated, indicating Joshua. "And trust me, you don't want to see him angry."

The disfigured witch sighed as if bored by the conversation. "We've been through this before, 452. You can't get out of here alive without my interference on your behalf. It was foolish to come back for him, but I'm glad you did. He'll be more willing to cooperate now."

"Oh I have no intentions of staying, and Alec is coming with me so I suggest you say your goodbyes."

Renfro stroked the side of Alec's face endearingly, and unless Max was very much mistaken, she could have sworn he had twitched slightly. The tightness in her chest started to ease. _He's coming around…_

She watched with bated breath as he groaned feebly and turned his head away from Renfro's icy fingers, grimacing at the pain the slight movement provoked.

"Alec?" Max called out, hoping for any sign of recognition. She needed him to know she was there. His head turned once again, this time towards the sound of her voice. He whimpered, his eyes squeezing tightly shut as he huffed out something that was a strange cross between a cough and a sob.

Anger flared in Max's eyes as she looked back up at the smirking Renfro. "What did you do to him?"

"We fixed him for you," she stated bluntly.

Well that doesn't sound good at all…

"Care to elaborate?" Max's heart thudded painfully hard against her ribcage.

"To put it simply, Sandeman restricted his abilities. In fact, he more or less made him mentally impotent." Grasping his chin, she turned Alec's head back towards herself. "But we broke through the barricade, and now he is finally what he was meant to be. Perfect." She leaned down and kissed him on the lips reverently like a commoner would kiss a king's ring.

Alec didn't even try to fight back. Aside from a brief, muffled grunt of protest, he just laid there, unmoving, and let the evil woman take what she wanted from him. Max felt like she was going to throw up on his behalf. She blurred angrily around the table, gripped the collar of Renfro's suit jacket, and yanked her away from him.

"Hey! Lonely much? Hate to ruin the mood and all, but he's just not that into you. Josh, get our boy. We're goin' home."

Joshua strode towards the table, anxious to help get his friend out of there. Renfro made to move around Max but she tightened her grip and bodily pinned the older woman up against the nearest wall. "Don't even think about it, Lady."

"If you take him now, he will die," Renfro stated simply, making Josh pause in his efforts to undo the straps holding Alec's legs in place. He looked back up at Max for instructions.

"You're bluffing. He'll be fine as soon as we get him away from you and this hellhole." She nodded at Joshua to continue, but Renfro butted in once more before he could move.

"Why do you think we didn't bother putting guards outside this door once we heard you were in the building? If you take him out of here, he won't survive and his death will be on _your_ head. He can't control the connection between the two of you yet and without the proper training and guidance, he will overload his senses and when that happens, going insane like his twin is the _best_ outcome you can hope for."

"Then at least he'll die a free man," Max growled back with more conviction than she felt. _Please don't let him die…_ To put emphasis behind her words, she gave Renfro one last shove and then moved backwards until she reached the table as well in order to help Joshua untie Alec's arms. As soon as he was free, he curled in on himself, rolling towards Max's warm embrace.

"M-Max…" he groaned out, his breath hitching on the one word.

He brought his good arm up towards his head, wrapping his elbow around his eyes in hopes of easing the migraine that was tearing his brain apart. Max put one hand on his forearm and the other on the top of his head, stroking his hair gently in the only way she knew how to give him some form of comfort.

"You're gonna be okay, Alec," she whispered, practically hugging him against her stomach though she was careful to avoid his bandaged left shoulder. "I'm gonna get you outta here. Just hang on a little longer."

"He doesn't _have_ to die, you know," Renfro said softly, watching the moving scene with interest. "There is another option. Stay with us, Max. You can oversee 494's care and when he is well enough to be reintegrated with the outside world, I will let you both walk out those doors and no one will stand in your way."

Max tightened her grip on Alec in a protective manner as she felt him shaking in her arms. His hair was sweaty and his muscles twitched in small spasms, each one looking just as painful as the first. Joshua shrugged off his over-shirt and laid it carefully across Alec's torso to give him some modesty and warmth.

As much as Max wanted to tell Renfro to shove her deal where the sun didn't shine, she felt it was important to know all the facts before shooting the idea down. After all, it could be Alec's only chance of survival.

"What's the catch?"

Renfro shrugged nonchalantly, relaxing against the wall in order to appear unthreatening. "Nothing too drastic. Just that we get to study the effects the latest developments will have on the two of you in the meantime."

Max scowled. "You mean become your lab rats again."

"It'll be crucial for us to understand how the connection works between you two in order for him to receive the proper treatment and conditioning. It's a win-win for both sides, really. He'll come out of this in one piece mentally, and we'll get the answers we've been waiting for all these years."

Max balked when she realized she was actually considering Renfro's proposal. She wasn't dumb enough to believe that the horrid woman would seriously let them just walk away when all was said and done.

But their chances of escaping when Alec was in better condition far outweighed their chances of getting out alive right now when he couldn't even get up on his own. And even if they managed to reach safety in one piece today, the probability of the over-stimulation to Alec's brain killing him anyway made the heroic attempt rather futile.

_Maybe it **would **be best if we just…_

A weak hand encircled her wrist and she was shaken from her thoughts. Glancing down she saw one of Alec's beautiful green eyes peering over his arm at her, utter desperation in his expression. "P-please," he gasped out. "D-don't, Max."

He knew what she was thinking and in all honesty, he preferred death to staying in this room one minute longer. And he sure as hell wasn't about to let Max turn herself in willingly when he had sacrificed himself specifically to get her out.

To get his point across, Alec began pushing himself up and off the exam chair. He gasped in pain, his body going rigid as fire lanced up his spine and through his skull. The effects of the high-leveled laser had yet to wear off completely.

Max shushed him and gently pushed him back down with a hand on his chest. She bit the side of her lip in concern when she felt his frantic heartbeat beneath her palm. "Don't try to move, Alec."

He blinked back tears of frustration. Why couldn't she understand how badly he needed to get out of this chair and away from this damned room? He covered his face with a hand, not wanting any of them to witness his emotional breakdown.

"You got 'im, Joshua?" he heard Max ask, then jumped in surprise when the big fella lifted him into the air just as easily as he would have with a two year old. Josh cradled Alec against his chest, and though he put up a half-hearted struggle at the idea of being carried out of Manticore, he had to admit that for the first time in a long time he felt completely safe in the arms of that over-sized puppy. He couldn't help but relax when Josh tightened his grip just enough to keep Alec from hurting himself further.

"We're going," Max continued, this time addressing Renfro. "If you want to stop us, you'll have to kill us and then it's game over to Sandeman's little plan. So what's it gonna be?"

TBC

Love it or hate it? Anything you want to see in upcoming chapters? Please review!


	11. Escapees and Intruders

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"We're going," Max continued, this time addressing Renfro. "If you want to stop us, you'll have to kill us and then it's game over to Sandeman's little plan. So what's it gonna be?"

Renfro took a moment to think over Max's proposal. Neither option was all that appealing, but when her eyes drifted to the beaten and broken transgenic held tightly by the dog-like giant, she knew she only had one real choice.

"He needs you," she states softly, indicating Alec before turning back to Max. "And I need _both_ of you, so for that reason alone, I will let you go. For now. But don't for one second think this is the end, 452. It's merely the beginning."

Max didn't want to contemplate what those ominous words meant, but she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth either. She nodded.

At that very moment, the tiny scientist appeared from the adjoining supply room, syringe in hand. He froze when he realized how significantly the tables had turned in his absence. "Madame?" he questioned, looking to Renfro for further instructions.

"494 will be receiving treatment elsewhere for a while, Dr. Bradbury," Renfro confirmed.

"And his second round of antibiotics?" He raised the needle up to where everyone could see it. Max instinctively took a step to her right, putting herself between the doctor and Alec.

Renfro rolled her eyes. "Contrary to what you may think, 452, the last thing we want is for your mate to die. He's too important to us. You might want to reconsider before he gets any worse."

"He's a transgenic," Max stated simply. "We were designed to heal. Alec will be just fine without your drugs screwin' with his system."

"On average, I'd say you'd be correct. But even an advanced immune system like yours has its limits, and I'm relatively certain we passed those about three hours ago. To be honest, I'm amazed he's conscious right now."

Max gazed over her shoulder at Alec and took in his ragged, washed-out appearance; the way his head was carefully cradled against Joshua's broad chest, and how the painful looking tremors continued to race up and down his spine, forcing his limbs to spasm occasionally.

As she watched, another bead of sweat trickled past his hairline and down his temple. The skin of his torso that wasn't hidden by Josh's haphazardly donned coat glistened wherever the bright medical lights reflected off his damp body. His barely open eyes were bloodshot and it was clearly taking all of his energy just to stay awake. In short, the poor guy was a mess.

Sparing the needle one more glance, Max glared at the scientist. "What are the antibiotics for?" she demanded.

"The gunshot wound he sustained to his left shoulder," Bradbury supplied. "It went straight through his scapula and left a lot of debris behind so without the proper treatment, he could easily get an infection in his current state. Judging by his fever, he probably already has one."

Max was so wrapped up in her thoughts that it took her a moment to realize Alec was saying something. She turned to him again, this time taking in his expression of fear and the fervent shaking of his head.

"N-no more, M-Max," he whimpered, his feverish eyes dancing from the syringe to his savior. "D-don' let 'im."

Now she was torn. She didn't want to put Alec through any more stress than necessary, but on the other hand, only Manticore knew what they had done to him in her absence and only they would have the proper medicine to fix it. But they also had the medicine to make it much worse. Who was she supposed to trust?

"Give it here," she commanded, holding her hand out to the scientist and moving towards him so that the man wouldn't have to get any closer to Alec. She practically pried the needle from the guy's hand and inspected it carefully. Field Med taught her just about everything she needed to know about first aid and proper procedures for administering vaccines.

She immediately picked up on the fact that it was a large gauge needle, which, under normal circumstances, would be completely unnecessary. Something wasn't right here… _Ah ha. Found it._

There was a small metal ball floating in the liquid. Max recognized it immediately as an advanced tracking device used by Manticore when they sent operatives out on important missions or if they were a potential flight risk.

She threw the needle across the room and felt a sense of satisfaction when it shattered against the wall mere inches from where the scientist stood. He ducked and looked back at her, wide-eyed.

"Thanks, but no thanks. You'll have to try better than that." She locked eyes with Renfro. "We're done here. I suggest you call off your dogs before you have a blood-bath on your hands." Max ushered Joshua and his precious cargo towards the door.

As Renfro led them safely through the hallways, the other Manticore residents gathered to watch, waiting eagerly for the attack order to come. After the first few twists and turns, Alec started to regain some of his strength, though it was mostly due to adrenaline.

He needed to be on his guard right now. An entire life's worth of training demanded it from him. He pushed weakly against Josh's chest. "I can walk, big guy. Put me down."

Okay, so maybe that was a bit of a lie, and if the trans-human actually obeyed, Alec would probably fall flat on his face. But with everyone's eyes glued to him, Alec refused to look so pathetic in front of the other soldiers. That was like dangling a trapped mouse in front of a starving cat.

Josh's only response was to tighten his grip, stilling Alec's minute struggles. "Alec lay low. Joshua will keep you safe." Alec continued to squirm a while longer, but to no avail.

Mole stood in a doorway as they passed, making sure White's men didn't interfere with the escape plan, and he snorted when he saw 494's predicament. He dipped his head slightly in acknowledgment when their eyes met.

Alec groaned in defeat as he slumped back down into Josh's arms, a pink hue tainting his cheeks that had nothing to do with the fever. "This is so embarrassing…" he mumbled.

Renfro escorted the small team right out through the front gates, telling her people to stand down and let them pass unharmed. They all breathed a collective sigh of relief when they reached the edge of the grass leading into the surrounding woods. Renfro called to Max from just inside the barricade. "I'll see you soon, 452."

Max refused to dignify the woman with an answer. Within seconds, she, Joshua, and Alec disappeared into the forest. Renfro watched them walk away until they were out of sight. Moments later, White came up beside her, a satisfied grin on his face. "Well played, Madame."

The disfigured woman smirked. "They can run, but they can't hide."

White held up a monitoring device that beeped as a red dot made its way through the surrounding area. "I'll have a team standing by to bring them all in."

DA-DA-DA

They were halfway through the woods when Alec felt the telltale burning in the back of his head. He squeezed his eyes shut and hissed through gritted teeth. He thought the connection was painful before, back when the visions first started out.

But this was an all-new level of pain now that there were no holds barred and the walls that had been designed to protect him had been so carelessly torn down by Manticore. He was helpless against the onslaught of images.

_White was standing next to Renfro, a satisfied grin on his face. "Well played, Madame."_

_The disfigured woman smirked. "They can run, but they can't hide."_

White held up a monitoring device that beeped as a red dot made its way through the surrounding area. "I'll have a team standing by to bring them all in."

"Good work, Ames. Let's hope it pays off. I want them back here by tonight."

Alec gasped in air, his lungs refusing to cooperate. He blinked up into the bright sunlight, then a head moved into his vision, leaning over him and shielding his sensitive eyes from the burning rays of the sun.

"Alec?" Max called, looking very worried as she pressed two fingers against the thrumming pulse in his neck. "Alec, what's wrong? What did you see?"

"T-trap," he choked out, pulling Max's hand away from his throat. His skin was crawling and the pressure of her fingers was making him lightheaded, not to mention impeding his speech. "It's a trap. White's men are followin' us."

Max frowned. "Well that's no surprise. I hardly expected them to just let us walk away for good. Don't worry though. We'll lose them."

"No. They know where we are, Max. They're trackin' us somehow."

"But I didn't let them tag you, Alec. I caught onto their devious little plan, remember? Unless…"

"I don't like the sound of that."

"Unless the one I smashed was just a decoy." Max froze. "Of course. They knew I'd see it and they were hoping it'd stop me from searching for other trackers. That scientist guy… He said second round of antibiotics. They must've tagged you before we showed up."

"Great." Alec blinked again and he was suddenly seeing himself through Max's eyes. "Ah crap…" His body was fighting the tenth level treatment with a vengeance and Max's close proximity was making their connection overwhelmingly strong.

He seized in Joshua's arms, back arching as his brain fought to keep itself from ripping apart. "God, Max… Make it stop. Please! Just make it stop!"

"Hang on, Alec. We're gonna get you help. I know it hurts but you need to stay with me." She carded her hand through his hair, rubbing her thumb soothingly over his forehead.

Max briefly entertained the idea of knocking him out to spare him any additional agony until they got back to Logan's place, and apparently the brief thought was all it took for Alec to catch it. His eyes widened at the thought of her taking a swing at him, then darkened as he realized it was the closest option he had to salvation.

"Do it."

"Alec, I…"

"I'm beggin' you, Maxie. Please. Just do it."

She nodded once, then drew her fist back and let it fly straight into his stubbled jaw. Alec was out before the pain could even register.

"Max?" Josh questioned, having no idea what had just happened between the two transgenics.

"Let's go, Big Fella. We've gotta keep moving."

Max and Joshua hoofed it through the rough terrain until they reached the rally point where Logan waited with bated breath. He broke out into a relieved smile when he saw Max emerge but his face fell again when a limp Alec was carried into view.

"What happened?" he asked as they clambered into the back of his van. "Is he…?"

"He's alive," Max verified, helping Joshua situate the unconscious transgenic on the floor. "But it's bad, Logan. He can't control the connection and it's stronger than ever now. We need to get him back to your place ASAP, and he's going to need medical attention."

"On it." Logan threw the vehicle into drive while pulling out his cell phone to alert Dr. Sam Carr of their predicament. Sam agreed to meet them at Logan's apartment within the hour.

Logan glanced up into the rearview mirror and watched as Max eased Alec's left hand onto his stomach and placed hers over it. If pressed, she would say she was doing it to keep his wounded shoulder from getting jostled too much as they traveled down the bumpy roads. But he knew it was her way of letting Alec know that he wasn't alone.

"How'd you get out of there?" Logan felt obligated to ask.

"Renfro escorted us out," Max replied. "To be honest, it all seemed a little too easy."

Logan frowned. "You don't think this is some sort of trap, do you?"

"That's exactly what this is. Alec says we're being tracked, and his visions haven't been wrong yet. I just have to figure out how they're doing it. Joshua, help me get the jacket off him. Watch his shoulder though."

Joshua easily pulled Alec up and rested him against his chest again, pawing the jacket off the transgenic's arms in the process. Max slid closer and began her inspection, lifting each arm carefully and running her fingers over every puncture wound she could see, searching for any hard bumps beneath Alec's skin that could be implanted technology of some sort.

Next, she checked the back of his neck, remembering all too well the little explosive White had embedded near Alec's brain stem a few months back but there wasn't even a scar to show for it now.

Her fingers glided strategically across his chest and over his abdomen. The heat that was emanating from his body made her cringe but she'd be lying if she said the smooth muscles beneath her fingertips didn't stir something deep inside of her. As OC once told her, Manticore sure knew how to make 'em pretty. Damn, she was glad Alec was unconscious for this.

Pulling her hands back, she shot a look towards Logan who was already staring at her in the mirror, a hurt look of realization in his eyes. The man didn't miss much. She'd answer to him later though. Now was not the time to deal with conflicting emotions. They were all in danger until the tracker was found and destroyed.

She huffed in annoyance when her search didn't end with positive results. "I don't see anything. It's not here."

"They could've stuck something to your clothing instead," Logan suggested, trying to get his head on track again. "You'll all have to change when we get back and then burn those outfits to be safe."

Max frowned in mock sadness. "Damn. I really liked this shirt too…"

Silence filled the van for a while as everyone's minds ran off in different directions. Eventually, Logan's throat clearing brought them all back to the here and now.

"Max, what're we gonna do when he wakes up?"

She shook her head, absently playing with Alec's hair as she contemplated how many wires had been crossed inside his skull thanks to Manticore. "I dunno. But we better think of somethin' fast."

Between the three of them, they were easily able to manhandle Alec up into Logan's apartment safely. But they were surprised to find they weren't the first people to arrive. A man stood in the far corner, more or less concealed by shadows as he took in the scenic view through the tall windows.

"Hey!" Max called out the moment her senses caught onto the intruder. "Who the hell are…?"

Her jaw dropped as the man turned, a small smile gracing his wizened face. "Hello, Max. It's been a while."

TBC

Thanks so much for keeping those inspiring reviews coming! They're all very much appreciated.


	12. Unwanted Visitors

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Hello, Max. It's been a while."

Max automatically took a step back. You can't argue with instinct. "You're supposed to be dead," unable to avoid stating the obvious.

Donald Lydecker nodded with a grim smirk on his face. "All things considered, I should be."

She folded her arms across her chest, unimpressed. "Leave it to Manticore to screw up the one good thing they tried to do for this world…"

Lydecker had the decency to look away. "I came here to warn you, Max. I know we didn't always see eye to eye, but all I ever wanted to do was keep you safe."

"Could've fooled me that one time you tried to put a bullet in my head." Max knew she was letting her anger get the better of her and she took a steadying breath. They had bigger fish to fry right now. "Manticore wants your head on a platter, Lydecker. Why risk coming out of hiding now?"

"When Manticore sent Cale the email from my account, they unknowingly triggered an alert. At first, I wasn't sure who was behind the hack but I was able to track it back to one of the secondary facilities in the area. I realized Renfro and White were trying to lure you back in, but I had no way of warning you that couldn't be traced short of coming here in person. For all accounts and purposes, I'm dead to Manticore and I'd like to keep it that way."

"Well that's convenient, cause you're dead to me too. So why don't you just do us all a favor and go crawl back under whatever rock you've been hidin' under? I've got enough problems on my plate without you complicating things."

"Max," Logan butted in. "Maybe we should hear him out."

She turned on him with a glare. "What the hell for? He's done nothing but ruin our lives and now he mysteriously returns from the dead with some half-assed olive branch and expects me to forgive and forget? I'm sorry, Logan, but that just isn't gonna happen. Not after all he's done."

"I'm not here for your forgiveness, Max," Lydecker admitted. "I know you want to take down the rest of Manticore and I'm here to lend a hand."

"Yeah, well, we don't need it, and we don't want it. I reduced the first place to cinders just fine without you, but I would be happy to escort your ass out the door if you need help findin' it."

Max was expecting an immediate retort but she frowned when she realized that Lydecker wasn't even listening to her anymore. His attention was locked on Alec's unconscious body, which was still cradled in Joshua's strong arms.

Josh, who had decided that Lydecker wasn't a huge threat after all, had moved out from behind Max and was making his way towards Logan's couch to lay Alec down. Lydecker tracked his careful movements.

"Ben?" he asked, barely above a whisper.

"No." Max swallowed down the emotion that was threatening to overtake her at the memory of her long lost brother. "Ben is dead."

Understanding dawned in Lydecker's eyes. "His twin then. 494. My God… They finally figured it out." He took a cautious step towards Alec's vulnerable form but Max quickly cut him off.

"Figured out _what_ exactly?"

"Tell me you weren't foolish enough to go to the warehouse," Lydecker demanded, ignoring her question. "Tell me they didn't capture the two of you and screw with his head."

"Believe me, I wish I could. They were waiting for me and took me down before I knew what was happening, and then Alec decided to play hero and surrendered himself to get me out. We got him back as quickly as we could but, as you can see, it wasn't soon enough. They hooked him up to some sort of machine… It looked like a reindoctrination laser, but worse."

"Damn it. He's lucky he's still breathing. You better hope they didn't get him talking first."

Logan had heard enough of the colonel's ramblings. He wanted answers. "Out with it, Lydecker. What aren't you telling us? What did they do to Alec?"

The elder man sighed wearily. "This may be a hard pill to swallow, Max, but you are meant to save the human population. The world has already gone to Hell thanks to the Pulse, but I assure you, it's going to get a whole lot worse in the near future.

"When Sandeman learned of the prophecies from the breeding cult, he started Manticore with the intent of making the perfect super-soldier. That's you, Max. After many failed trials, you were his success. And as for him…" He jerked his chin towards Alec. "He was created for the sole purpose of keeping you safe until you fulfill your destiny."

Max rolled her eyes. "Renfro was rattling on about the same nonsense. I don't know what all you people want from me, but I'm not gonna be a part of it, and neither will Alec. I take care of me and mine. The rest of the world is on its own."

"And to Hell with the human race, is that it?"

"I don't know if you've been watching the news lately, Deck, but normal people don't _want_ us around. There may be a war comin', but it's not ours to fight. We've got our own problems, and I don't owe those people anything."

Lydecker opened his mouth to respond, but a weak groan brought their conversation to an abrupt halt. Alec was waking up again. His head tossed on the pillow Joshua had propped him up against and his brow furrowed as his aches and pains returned.

Max was at his side immediately, kneeling next to the couch. "Alec? Can you hear me?"

Alec tried to open his eyes but hissed as the pain ratcheted up another level. "Max? Where…?" He raised his right hand and pressed it gently against his jaw where a deep bruise was starting to show. She probably should've pulled her punch a bit more…

Max winced in sympathy. "We're at Logan's. You're safe."

The weary soldier squinted up at her, trying to bring her face and the rest of the room into focus as his head continued to throb unmercifully. "Did you get the tracker out?"

"No. I'm sorry, Alec. We haven't found it yet."

"Tracker? What tracker?" a familiar male voice demanded from somewhere in the room. Even half out of it, Alec's blood ran cold as recognition hit him almost as hard as Max's fist had.

Lydecker seemingly appeared out of thin air over Max's shoulder as Alec fought against the haze that threatened to drag him back into the darkness. The older man stared down at him, much like he always did back at Manticore when Alec was undergoing medical procedures, none of which had been pleasant. "It's nice to see you again, son. And no, you're not hallucinating."

The young transgenic's eyes widened in fear and he scrambled backwards on the couch until he was pressed tightly into the very corner of it, as far away from Lydecker as he could manage without toppling onto the floor. "What the hell is he doin' here, Max?" he panted out.

"It's okay, Alec. He's here to help, believe it or not."

"How about not? You realize he was the one overseeing the psy-ops treatments, right? The handler from Hell?" Alec's mind unwillingly flashed back to the first time he was strapped down to a chair and had a laser burning through his retina. He was just a kid at the time.

The man responsible was standing less than three feet away. Lydecker was _supposed_ to be dead and Alec had taken comfort in that rumor, brushing off the past with a cocky smirk as if he hadn't been traumatized for life. Nothing a few scotches couldn't fix, right?

You did what you had to do. Then you tried to forget. And when you couldn't forget, they had ways of making you not care.

But now… Now he was having trouble discerning nightmares from reality. It felt as if his mind were fracturing, and if he had managed to survive the escape from Manticore only to end up in Lydecker's hands again, he might as well just swallow a bullet and end things on his own terms.

Max touched Alec's arm gently and he jumped, having completely forgotten that she was in the room too. He forced his gaze to shift from the colonel to Max.

After the terrible events that had taken place over the past few days, Alec's defenses were entirely non-existent. Max could see the fear, the pain, and the hint of betrayal in his eyes as he looked at her and it broke her heart.

Not long ago, he had started to tell her a little of what he had gone through after she and her siblings had escaped back in '09:

"_You wouldn't understand. You _can't _understand. You weren't there. You ran. You and your little rugrat brothers and sisters. You think life was rough when we were ten? A little schooling, a little brainwashing, some maneuvers outside… You think that was tough? Take it from me. Later on, it got a whole lot worse."_

As soon as his vulnerability started to show, however, he shut down and dismissed her. He didn't want her comfort, and he didn't want her pity. No sense dredging up the past when it was easier to just bury it deep down.

She could only imagine what they had done to him over the years and she wasn't sure she even wanted to entertain the possibilities. After all, she had escaped that horrid place for a reason. Her imagination probably wouldn't come close to the terrible reality.

The fact that Lydecker was responsible for at least some of Alec's most painful childhood memories was not lost on her. To see him terrified to the point of shaking simply because the man was in the same room as him, it made her want to whip around and snap Lydecker's neck for all the things he put Alec through. But, aside from making her feel better, his death wasn't going to help their situation any.

"You can't trust him, Max," Alec bit out through clenched teeth, trying his best to turn his fear into anger and hatred. That's what he was trained to do after all. _Lydecker would be so proud…_

"I don't," Max stated simply. "He invited himself to the party, but if he really can help us..." She trailed off at the desperate look in his eyes. He was silently pleading with her to send the man away. "We need all the help we can get," she finished apologetically.

Alec dropped her gaze and stared at his hands, which were clenched into fists against his drawn up knees. He was hardly up for a fight right now, so just like he had done back at Manticore, he forced his body to at least _appear_ relaxed and chose to wait for the opportune moment to strike. At least he had Max, Joshua, and Logan here to watch his back this time around.

"First thing's first," Max declared. "We need to locate the tracker and shut it down before they get a lock on this place." She glanced over at Logan. "What's Sam's ETA?"

Cale checked his watch. "He should be arriving any minute."

"No _civilian_ doctor is gonna be able to help him," Lydecker stated scathingly. "And your priority needs to be stopping the connection before it causes irreparable damage. Step aside."

Max's eyebrows drew together as she looked up at him warily. "What for?"

"I stayed up to date on the recent technological advances and medical procedures that Manticore has been adopting over the years. There may be something I can do for him."

"No," Alec growled. "You stay away from me. I'll take permanent brain damage over your so-called help." As if to make a fool out of him, pain seared through Alec's head and he saw himself again through Max's eyes. Was he really that pale? He squeezed his eyes shut against the pain and the fragile-looking image of himself. "Ah! Damn it!"

Strong, calloused hands suddenly gripped his face and tilted his head back, then lifted his clenched eyelids with some difficulty. Alec tried to push the meddling hands away but seeing the room through someone else's perspective was really disorienting.

"What do you see?" Lydecker demanded, his words barely registering with the struggling transgenic.

"Get off me!" Alec growled, managing to knock one of Donald's hands away but the fingers immediately shifted to the back of his neck with a vice-like grip, holding his head steady once more.

"What. Do. You. See?"

"The ugly bald spot on the back of your giant head!" Alec snapped back and Lydecker finally released him, looking over his shoulder at Max who was watching them wide-eyed. The only way Alec could see the back of Lydecker's head would be if he were standing exactly where she was. That could only mean…

"You need to control the connection, 494. It'll tear your mind apart if you don't."

"You think I don't know that? It's not like this crap comes with an instruction manual or anything!" Alec cradled his pounding head in his hands with a pained groan. "Seems like every time I open my eyes, my vision goes haywire."

Lydecker sighed, then began taking off his belt.

"What're you doin'?" Alec asked nervously, glancing up at the sound as his anger morphed back into fear again. He uncurled himself in favor of leaning as far away from the man as he possibly could.

Max grabbed Lydecker's arm furiously, halting his movements. "Hey! The man asked you a question!"

"It's for his own good, Max. Until he learns to control the visions or until we can find a way to get his mental wall back up again, we're gonna have to keep him blindfolded or his brain is going to overload itself like a computer with a virus."

"Hell no!" Alec balked, worming his way onto the arm of the couch and readying himself to bolt for the door if necessary. "Don't even think about it, Deck…" It was one thing to have an old enemy in the same room as you, but not being able to keep him within his sights was where Alec drew the line.

Just as he was about to fall onto the hard, unforgiving floor, he was brought up short by a broad chest, which halted his escape as effectively as a solid wall. Joshua's big hand settled over his pounding heart, pinning him in place and acting as a large, hairy security blanket. Alec clutched Josh's shirtsleeve with his uninjured arm, desperately seeking out a sense of stability.

"I'm sorry, son, but it's our best option at this point." Lydecker shot a look at Max, knowing his next words were going to be a low blow. It had to be done though, for Alec's own protection. "You realize this connection will kill you if we don't harness the power, right? Would you really prefer to have Max lose someone else she cares about just because you were too afraid to man up?"

"I…" Alec's jaw opened and closed, but nothing else came out of it.

"You _what_, soldier? Is her happiness worth it to you or not?"

Max's grip on Lydecker's arm tightened enough to leave deep bruises as she glared furiously at him. "Don't you _dare_ try to…!"

"Okay," Alec practically whispered. "Okay, I'll do it." He dropped his gaze to the floor in defeat.

"Alec…" Max began but Lydecker pulled himself free of her grasp and cut her off before she could talk the young transgenic back out of his surrender.

"You're doing the right thing, kid." He advanced towards Alec who tensed but didn't try to move away this time. Joshua took one look at the leather belt and snarled at the old man as he approached.

"Wait. Come into the twenty-first century, Lydecker," Logan muttered as he tossed him an old bandana he had just retrieved from his bedroom. It'd be a lot more comfortable than the belt at any rate and still be just as effective.

Lydecker nodded his gratitude, and without any further ado, he fastened the fabric around Alec's eyes, knotting it tightly at the back of his head and plunging him into darkness. Instinctively, the transgenic reached up to adjust the blindfold, warring with his desire to rip the damn thing off, but his hand was quickly batted away.

"Leave it," Lydecker grumbled.

Alec was breathing heavily now. He relied a lot on his enhanced eyesight, and having it taken away was nerve-racking. But at least the pulsating pain in his head was finally starting to ease up; the lack of visual stimulation giving his brain some much-needed rest. He tried not to flinch when Lydecker's heavy hand landed on the bare skin of his good shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Now that we've bought you some more time, let's find and destroy this tracker of yours before we get any more unwanted visitors…"

TBC

Sorry for the long wait everyone! I started a new job recently and the training has been taking up a lot of my time but I'll try to keep up with the best of both worlds! Please review.


	13. Up Or Down

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"This isn't smart, Maxie. I should go," Alec stated, trying to keep the quiver out of his voice. The thought of being out there and alone with Manticore on his tail was nightmare inducing, but he had no idea how long it would take to find the tracker and shut down the signal.

"Go where?" Max asked with a derisive snort. She knew he had nowhere else to go. The suggestion was completely ridiculous.

But for all Alec knew, Renfro or White could be standing right outside of Logan's door already. The way he saw it, he was already going down. There was no need to take everyone else down with him. "Anywhere but here. I could lead them away."

"Don't be an idiot," she grumbled in annoyance. Did he really think she would just let him walk out the door and sacrifice himself once again? The couch springs groaned as she sat down next to his knees, making sure he knew she was there. "You're staying right where you are."

"But Max," Alec protested, "they'll _expect_ us to be together. They're playin' us again. When they come knockin', it's not just two transgenics they're gonna find either. You realize that, right? They'll get Eyes Only too. If I stay here, we're givin' Manticore exactly what they want."

Alec heard the whir of the exo-skeleton's motors as Logan approached the couch. "This isn't the first time I've had to pack up and leave, Alec. Don't worry about me, or Eyes Only. As long as I have a running computer, I can keep my hacks going from anywhere. You're the primary concern right now."

"This is touching, people, but every second you spend chatting is another step closer for Manticore," Lydecker grumbled. "Can we please proceed now?"

"Knock yourself out," Max acquiesced, her tone daring him to do something useful for a change. "Got a clue where to start?"

"Too many, unfortunately. And that's excluding the latest trial advancements."

"Great," Max sighed in frustration.

Lydecker turned to Alec, trying hard to see him as the science experiment that he was rather than as one of his lost and frightened kids. He had to remain professional if they were going to survive this. "Any suggestions, 494? Do you remember getting jabbed by a particularly large needle at some point? Behind an ear, perhaps? Or in a wrist?"

Alec shook his head. "Not to my knowledge, but I was unconscious for some of that time. When I woke up again, I was in too much pain for a needle prick to stand out so they could've easily tagged me without me bein' any the wiser."

Max's hand found his knee and gave it a gentle squeeze in silent comfort. For the first time that night, Alec was actually glad for the blindfold because it hid the embarrassment in his eyes and the blush that tinted his upper cheeks at his recent admission. He scratched idly at the back of his head, feeling uncomfortable. Lydecker frowned.

"And yet you're sure they did in fact tag you? This isn't just paranoia talking?"

"My 'visions', or whatever you want to call them, haven't been wrong yet. So I'd say yeah, it's a pretty good bet."

"And they let us walk without much of a fight," Max added. "They wouldn't have let that happen unless they were confident they could bring us back in again."

Lydecker nodded his agreement. "Guess we've got our work cut out for us then."

"Hold up," Alec balked, dropping his hand back down to his stomach and turning his head in Lydecker's general direction. "There is no '_we' _in this scenario, understand? You're keepin' your hands to yourself, Deck."

The old man actually had the audacity to chuckle at him. "Son, after all these years, I probably know your body better than you do. There's no sense in gettin' shy on me at a time like this."

Just when he thought his face couldn't get any redder. "Can someone please just shoot me now?"

"Relax, Alec," Max interrupted. "There might be another way. I… I have an idea." The hesitation in her tone was far from comforting.

"Uh oh. That doesn't sound good."

"It's probably gonna suck, and it might not even work."

"Great pep-talk, Max. How could I possibly say no?" Alec asked sarcastically.

"I'm serious. If you really are being tracked, it's our best chance at finding it quickly."

"What is it, Max?" Logan asked, already convinced he wasn't going to like what she was about to say, but there was no time left to waste.

"I want to try and reverse the connection," she spit out in one quick breath.

Alec tilted his head in confusion. "Come again?"

"When your flashes take over, you see me in the future, right?"

"Yeah…"

"I want to see if I can force the connection to show me your _past_ instead. Maybe you _did_ see where they planted the tracker but you were just too out of it to remember."

Alec stiffened immediately. "Max, I don't think this is somethin' we should be screwin' around with."

"Alec's right," Logan jumped in again. "You could do more harm than good. We don't know if these visions of his are going to have negative side effects somewhere down the line. Each vision could be causing an internal hemorrhage for all we know."

"Normally, I'd say it's not worth the risk. But the injection site could be completely healed by now and we'll never find it before they come for him. This could be our only option left."

"I'd say it's worth a shot," Lydecker said, weighing in on the vote. "Better than letting Renfro get her hands on him again."

"Still here, guys," Alec grumbled, feeling like the others were trying to cut him out of the conversation as if his opinion no longer mattered. Well, too damn bad because as far as he was concerned, his opinion was the _only _one that mattered right now.

If Max found a way to reverse his memories, she'd see what he went through in her stead. The guilt of leaving him there to be tortured would tear her apart, especially after what had happened to Ben. He couldn't let her do that. The past was going to die with him, no arguments about it. "It's not gonna happen, Max."

"Alec, come on. I think it's worth…"

"I said no, alright? Find another way."

"But if you'd just…"

"Quiet," Joshua suddenly commanded.

Everyone fell silent, listening for what might have caught the dog-man's attention. When Max was sure there were no footsteps approaching the door, she turned to her giant of a friend in concern. "What is it, big fella?"

"Beeping."

"You mean like a car? Or a phone?"

"No. Alec."

Alec twisted slightly in Josh's arms as if to look up over his shoulder at him, regardless of the fact that he couldn't see. "Huh? What the heck are you talkin' about, Josh?"

"Alec beeping."

Max leaned closer, tilting her ear towards the young transgenic. "I don't hear anything."

"I do. High pitch. It's louder now than it was."

"That's probably the tracker," Lydecker supplied, unhelpfully.

"Gee, ya think?" Alec muttered. "Beepin' for the fun of it ain't exactly my style."

"Can you tell where it's comin' from, Joshua?" Max asked, ignoring the bickering men. Maybe they had finally caught a break.

Josh tentatively released his hold on Alec's chest, careful to make sure his friend wasn't going to fall without his support, then made his way to the side of the couch. Max stood and slipped out of the way, giving Josh room to maneuver. The dog-man leaned over Alec, listening intently. "Getting louder. Faster."

"We've gotta hurry then. They're closin' in," Lydecker stated with conviction.

Alec's nose wrinkled in distaste as Josh got up close to the point of them being mere inches apart, breathing the same air. "Ever heard of personal space, dude? When was the last time you had a bath? Or a tic-tac?"

"Don't know," Joshua responded honestly. "Stop talking." He gripped Alec's good shoulder and pushed him back a few inches so he had more space with which to work. Alec winced as his muscles automatically tightened in response, his body fighting to stay balanced in his precarious position.

"Lie down, Alec," Max ordered, then without waiting for him to obey or argue, she grabbed his ankles from the other end of the couch and pulled, yanking him down off of the arm of the chair. He landed flat on his back, the air whooshing out of his lungs in surprise as he bounced on the cushions a bit.

"Oof! Damn, Max… Demanding much? Couldn't you've just asked nicely?"

"Shut up and don't move."

Alec practically held his breath as Josh continued to scan his body like a human metal detector. Then the trans-human's heavy head suddenly settled against Alec's tense stomach, his ear plastered to his abdomen.

Alec raised his own head a few inches off the couch, trying to get a sense of what was happening, but the blindfold made the attempt futile. He was really starting to get frustrated with the stupid thing again. "Uh, Josh? What're you doin', big guy?"

The weight was gone almost as fast as it had come, and a long, claw-like nail replaced it, poking him in the gut. "There. Tracker."

Alec's hand immediately moved towards his stomach in search of any indicator that Josh was right, but his wrist was quickly caught by Max's strong fingers. Her other hand pressed lightly against the spot Josh had pointed out.

Alec gasped and jerked as her cool fingertips made contact with his over-heated skin. "Jeez, Max! Your hands are freezing!"

"No, they're not." _His fever is getting worse… _She swallowed against the queasiness in her stomach before adding, "Stop squirming." She carefully inspected the skin over the tracker, but there was no evidence of a puncture mark anywhere in the surrounding area.

"Do you realize how degrading this is?" Alec asked, using humor to cover the fear that was slowly rising up inside of him once again. "I mean, seriously. They turned me into their freakin' LoJack-ed lapdog. I feel so used."

"Deal with it," came Max's clipped reply. She was missing an important clue and she knew it. Something niggled at the back of her mind, but apparently it preferred to remain elusive.

"I bet you're just lovin' this, aren't you," Alec mumbled. Okay, so maybe he was pouting a bit now, having had quite enough of being bossed around and prodded at like a lab animal. Pride wasn't something the confident and handsome man lost very often, after all.

Max rolled her eyes. "Contrary to what you might think, Alec, even though it has become my daily routine, savin' your ass isn't exactly my idea of fun."

"Whoa whoa whoa… Who saved _whose_ ass this time?"

Max squeezed Alec's captured wrist a bit harder than necessary, making pain spark through the bruised limb; bruises made by the restraints on Manticore's reindoctrination chair.

"Ow!" He yanked his arm out of her grasp and knew he only managed it because she allowed him to do so. Talk about a kick to the pride. Max smirked as he rubbed at his sore wrist dejectedly. _At least I distracted him for a minute._

"I figured since you already owe me fifty times over, it would only be fair to let _you_ save _me_ once in a while too or you'd never get out of debt."

"Interesting logic. But don't I at least get bonus points for style?"

"You mean stupidity?"

"That would sting, Max, if I thought you really meant it." Now Alec was outright smiling, a big goofy grin on his face. Even Max had to chuckle a little, though she ended it with a sad shake of her head. Leave it to Alec to cheer her up when it was _his_ ass on the line.

Lydecker stepped forward, quickly putting an end to the half-hearted banter. "You can stop looking for punctures, Max," he said softly. Then, more to himself than anyone else in the room, he added, "I can't believe those sons of bitches finally did it…"

"Did what?" Logan asked.

"They created a bug that is strong enough to withstand corrosion due to stomach acid. Max, they didn't inject him with it."

As if a light had just switched on, something clicked in Max's brain and suddenly, it all made sense. Back at Manticore, she had watched White leave the psy-ops room, wiping his hands on a towel. And once she had broken into the room, she saw Renfro dabbing Alec's face dry.

Lydecker was right; he hadn't been injected. She looked up at him, her own face going pale. "They forced it down his throat."

"I knew they had been working on a prototype that could withstand the decomposition for forty-eight hours, but I didn't realize how close they were to succeeding. This isn't good, Max."

"Why not?" Logan piped up. "At least we don't have to cut it out of him. We just have to wait for it to disintegrate and clear through his system now, right?"

"We don't have _time_ to wait. The faster and louder that thing beeps, the closer Manticore gets to collecting the whole lot of you. We need to get that tracker out now and destroy it, but it's not going to be pleasant. This tracker is encompassed with a protective shield that makes it approximately the width of a bottle cap and just over an inch in length." He turned to Alec, sympathy written all over his face. "Pick a direction, kid. Up, or down?"

Alec swallowed hard.

TBC

Once again, sorry for the massive delay everyone! If you're still enjoying this story, please let me know, and if you want to share ideas for future chapters, I'd love to hear them! If you were in Alec's shoes, what would you choose?


	14. Time to Purge

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Pick a direction, kid. Up, or down?"

Alec swallowed hard. "I, uh…" A sudden knock at the door bought him some more time to decide. Lydecker pulled a gun from the back of his jeans and nodded to Logan, silently telling him to check it out.

Logan nodded back and tiptoed his way to the door, peering through the peephole before letting out a relieved breath. The tension left his body immediately. "It's okay," he called over his shoulder. "It's Dr. Carr."

He unbolted the door and pulled it open, welcoming his friend inside. Sam shook his hand with a smile. "Let me guess… Alec is back and a bit worse for the wear, right?" he asked, good-naturedly.

"He did what he had to do and now he's paying for it," Logan confirmed with a sigh, motioning the doctor towards the living room where everyone else was waiting.

"Sounds about right. Think he'll sit still long enough for me to do my job this time?"

"I can hear you, ya know," Alec grumbled as the two men approached.

"I know," Sam acknowledged with a smirk, but his expression turned grim as he took in his bruised and bloodied patient. "Jeez, kid. What the hell happened?" Without waiting for a response, he turned to Logan and asked, "Why is he blindfolded?"

Max stood up and supplied the explanation. "Long story short, Alec handed himself over to the baddies for a while and they don't play well with others. Basically, if he has another vision at this point, it'll be a whole lot worse than the last time."

"It would be enough to incapacitate him at the least, possibly even kill him," Lydecker added.

"I see." The doctor frowned in concern as he turned his attention back to Alec. "Well, at least you're conscious this time around. I count that as a plus."

"That makes one of us," Alec groaned as he shifted slightly on the couch, his shoulder giving a painful twinge at the movement.

Lydecker decided it was time to move the conversation along. Time was wasting. "We think he was forced to swallow a tracking device while in captivity." Max glared at the man for his choice of words. He made Alec sound like an animal in a zoo. "It has to be removed and destroyed. The sooner, the better."

"What if we sent an electrical pulse through it?" Max asked, the idea suddenly occurring to her. "Wouldn't it short circuit?"

"No. Manticore planned ahead for that," Lydecker explained, sounding half impressed and half annoyed at his previous employers. "They wanted a bug that was difficult to remove and impossible to tamper with. You can't fry it cause it's made out of some sort of special plastic with a rubber-like coating, you can't cut it out without the risk of spilling stomach acid into the abdominal cavity, and you sure as hell can't wait for it to disintegrate cause Renfro will be here long before that happens."

"Which leaves us with expelling it," Sam surmised, then winced at the thought. "…Or maybe blocking it?" He looked up at Logan again and everyone's eyes followed.

"If I can get a read on its frequency, I might be able to mess with the signal. It should buy us some time, but if they've been tracking him since he escaped, they'll already know he's here."

"Of course they know he's here," Lydecker growled with a roll of his eyes. "They're closing in at this very moment. I can feel it. All things considered, they should've made a play for him already, but they haven't." He paused to consider the implications. "…They're waiting for something."

"Waiting for what?" Max demanded.

"I dunno, but it can't be anything good. There's no point in runnin' if he's still broadcasting our coordinates. Logan, go see what you can do about jamming the signal." Logan nodded and headed towards his computer in the other room. Lydecker's gaze shifted to Sam. "Get the damned thing outta the kid, then we move out."

Sam nodded. "Okay, I think we can do this quickly and non-invasively. I always carry a bottle of Ipecac in my bag when making house calls in case of poisoning or overdoses."

"Great," Alec chimed in. "Crack a bottle open and let's get this show on the road."

"It's not going to be pleasant, Alec," Sam added apologetically.

Alec shrugged it off. "Story of my life. But I'll take that crap over gettin' my ass hauled back in by Renfro any day. The sooner this thing is outta me, the happier I'll be."

"Hold onto that thought, cause I have a feeling you'll be singing a different tune in about twenty minutes. Can you sit up?"

"I'm blind, doc. Not paralyzed." Regardless of Alec's words, it was a struggle to get himself upright on the couch, his arm and head throbbing at the slightest of movements.

Max bit the inside of her cheek and clenched her hands into fists by her sides. She wanted to reach out and help Alec, but she knew he would resist her attempts now that he was conscious enough to do so. Instead, she held her ground and waited patiently while the other transgenic fought his way to vertical.

Sam sifted through his bag until he found the dark brown bottle of emetic and then debated on the proper measurements. "Typically, I'd only give you two tablespoons of this stuff at most, but given your transgenic metabolism… Better double the dosage just in case."

Alec grimaced. "Lucky me. You know, I think if I just concentrate on Renfro's face and her creepy skeletal fingers all over me, I could save us all a lot of trouble and manage to puke within seconds."

Max put a hand over her stomach and swallowed hard. "Ugh, stop it. You're gonna make _me _sick."

"Hope you've got another bathroom in here somewhere, Logan," Alec chuckled. "Two sick transgenics can get real messy. Might wanna crack a window." He heard the doc pouring the syrupy liquid into a glass, then held his hand out so Sam could pass the cup over.

Alec raised the glass to the room at large in jest, then shrugged resignedly. "Bottoms up."

The sickly sweet maple smell of the medicine alone was nearly enough to activate Alec's gag reflex thanks to his heightened senses. But, knowing how much was at stake, he forced himself to swallow the viscous fluid and quickly chased it with a full glass of water, compliments of Max.

"Now what?" he rasped with a final grimace as he handed the empty cup to Sam, swiping the back of his hand across his mouth.

"Now we wait for it to kick in. It shouldn't take long, and in the meantime, we can address your other injuries. That looks like a pretty nasty gash above your temple by the way."

Alec feigned indifference. "Nah, it looks worse than it feels. The cut itself wasn't all that deep."

"Deep enough to knock you on your ass for a good twenty minutes," Max scoffed.

The doc frowned in concern again, an expression that was becoming really common around his two latest acquaintances. "You lost consciousness?"

"I've had worse, doc. It's really not that big 'a deal."

"Why don't you let me be the judge of that?" Not wanting to startle his temporarily blind- not to mention lethal- patient, Sam gave Alec a warning. "You're going to feel my fingers around your temple. Try to hold still."

The doctor pressed gently on the bruised skin surrounding the gash. Alec hissed when Sam put pressure on a particularly dark area of bruising but didn't pull away. Sam attempted to distract him as he worked. "Mind if I ask how you came by this injury?"

"It was a welcome home present from some true blues back at Manticore."

Max scoffed. "Right… Maybe it's just me, but the butt of a gun to the face hardly screams 'We missed you, Alec!'"

"I beg to differ," Alec shot back. "According to Manticore's standards, that was practically a Beaver Cleaver moment."

"A what?" Max quirked an eyebrow at him in confusion.

"Seriously, Max. You should take a page outta Brain's book and watch a little boob tube sometime. Might do ya some good."

While the two transgenics antagonized each other, Sam cleaned out the cut, deemed that it wasn't deep enough to warrant stitches (especially considering the advanced healing abilities Alec possessed), and put two small butterfly bandages over it to keep the wound closed in hopes of preventing scarring.

He would've liked to have checked Alec's eyes for possible signs of a concussion, but taking the blindfold off would most likely do more harm than good at this point.

As he worked, he couldn't help but notice the heat coming off of Alec. Unless he was very much mistaken, the guy's fever was even higher than it had been last time he had checked it, and at that point it had been 104.6. If the doctor had to hazard a guess, he'd say Alec's temperature was closer to 106 degrees now. Definitely not a good sign.

In fact, a fever _that_ high tends to indicate an infection. He turned his attention to the bloody gauze patch taped just below his left collarbone. "Dare I ask what happened to your shoulder?"

"Turns out we're _not _actually faster than a speeding bullet. Superman takes the cake on that one. Though to be fair, he didn't have our night vision, so I suppose one could argue that…"

"Alec," Max groaned.

"Right. Shutting up now."

"I'm gonna need to take a look," Sam informed his patient, then began to carefully peel the gauze off the wound.

This time, Alec did jerk away as the cotton pad clung to the bullet hole via dried blood. "Ah! Easy, doc. It's still a little raw."

"Sorry. Is the bullet still in there?"

"No. It went straight through. Renfro cleared out the debris, but I tell ya… I have no idea where she got her bedside manner from. It sucks. Big time."

Once Sam removed the last piece of tape and tossed the gauze away, it became pretty clear that this was the site of the infection. Angry red tendrils stretched out from the wound, which was hot to the touch and looked painfully swollen.

A few of the stitches had been pulled, no doubt thanks to rough handling or struggling, and while most of the blood around the injury had dried and crusted over, there was still some fresh blood oozing between the stitches.

"Okay, Max, we're gonna need some sterile cloths and hot water with soap."

"On it." She hastened from the room to gather the needed supplies.

"It doesn't look good, does it," Alec said softly, confirming more than asking.

"I've seen worse," Sam responded, though for the life of him, he couldn't think of any examples.

Max returned quickly, arms laden with the requested items. She handed them to the doctor. "Here."

"Thank you." Sam set about preparing the materials, then carefully gripped Alec's upper arm to hold him steady. "Prepare yourself, Alec."

Max immediately moved in behind her fellow transgenic and wrapped a strong arm around his torso, much like Joshua had done earlier. Alec dropped his head back against her shoulder and she placed the other hand lightly on his forehead, a gesture meant to comfort rather than restrain. "You know the routine. Just breathe through it, okay?"

Alec nodded once as he tried to relax, then his body went rigid as Sam started to gently scrub away the dried blood and busted stitches. 494's neck arched back in pain and he gritted his teeth as Max tightened her hold. "Shut it out, Alec. Shut out the pain and keep breathing…"

His shoulder was more painful now than when he was first shot. The slightest pressure on the surrounding skin made his entire torso throb, and the grating feeling of the course fabric over the wound was making his stomach flip. Or maybe that was the Ipecac…

_Oh, crap._

"Almost done, Alec," Sam soothed, peering closely at the injury now that he had an unobstructed view. It didn't look good. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to take out most of these stitches and pack the wound until the infection clears up a bit."

Taking that as his cue, Joshua moved in to help hold Alec down as well. The young transgenic felt trapped and an overwhelming panic surged through him.

"Wait! Just…" Alec felt the bile creeping up the back of his throat and knew he wouldn't be able to hold it off for much longer. He began to struggle against the strong hands, desperate to make it to the bathroom before he embarrassed himself, but his friends clung to him even tighter, apparently thinking he was just afraid to face more pain. He tried to alert his fellow transgenic to his plight. "Max, please… Let me go!"

She scoffed back. "Stop being such a baby, Alec! It'll be over before you know it. Don't make it worse on yourself."

In a desperate attempt to make her understand, Alec unwittingly forced a connection between them once again and barely held back a yelp of pain as it jolted through his head. Max immediately released him, having felt his nausea first hand.

"Hold up everyone! Let him go. The meds just kicked in," she informed a perplexed Dr. Carr. "He's ready to, uh… purge."

As soon as the hands left his body, Alec lunged off the couch, tore the blindfold from his eyes so he could see where he was going, and stumbled his way towards the bathroom before anyone could stop him again.

TBC

Huge thanks go out to all my supportive reviewers, particularly yeningyou and The Homeless Poet who inspired me to finish this chapter and get it posted for everyone! Please keep the reviews coming!


	15. Kill Switch

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Alec barely had time to drop to his knees in front of the toilet bowl before his stomach clenched painfully and he heaved. Unfortunately, all that came up was the water he had downed earlier. He panted as the first wave abated momentarily, then spit into the toilet.

Max, Joshua, and Dr. Carr watched sympathetically from the doorway, the three of them standing by just in case Alec needed anything.

For the next five minutes straight, the ailing transgenic's muscles spasmed and contracted but there was still no sign of the tracker. During the next lull, Alec dropped his sweaty forehead down onto his arm in exhaustion. The other hand wrapped itself securely around his aching midsection.

"You were right," he rasped through an irritated throat. "This _does_ suck."

Max slipped forward and placed a tentative hand on his clammy shoulder. She could feel his muscles quivering beneath her fingertips from the strain of holding himself up.

Apparently, his transgenic strength decided to ditch him for the time being and he felt as weak as a newborn kitten. She could hardly blame him. No doubt even his genetically superior immune system had been shot to hell by now.

Sam stepped up to the sink and poured Alec a glass of water. He handed it to Max since her fellow X5 didn't bother to look up at the sound. "You should drink that, Alec."

Alec rolled his head from side to side a bit, a feeble way of telling the doc no. "What's the point?" he mumbled past dry lips. "Jus' gonna throw it up anyways."

"You need to at least try, kid. If all else fails, we'll put you on an IV drip. But you don't want to battle dehydration along with everything else, trust me. Your body is already suffering enough."

Logan popped his head into the bathroom, checking on their progress. "How's it comin' in here?"

Alec groaned into the crook of his arm and gave Logan the thumbs down. Logan winced.

"If it helps at all, I think I've managed to successfully block the signal the tracker was emitting. Knowing Manticore, they'll find a way around it eventually, but I think it'll slow them down for a little while."

Joshua's head suddenly tilted to the side again. "Beeping louder. Faster."

"Damn it!" Lydecker barked, making everyone else jump in surprise. "You triggered the failsafe, Cale!"

"What failsafe?" Max questioned.

"An internal explosive device if the tracker goes offline for longer than a minute."

"Why the hell didn't you mention that before?" she demanded.

"As I said earlier, these trackers were only prototypes when I was still working for Manticore. Like the gossamers, some were designed solely to track our soldiers in the field. But some of them were made as threats for the potential flight risks. You go out of your given radius, you've got five minutes before your insides are on the outside."

DA-DA-DA

White stood with his extraction team one block away from 494's location, tracking equipment in hand. A smug smile crossed his face when the signal cut out and the red dot suddenly started blinking yellow.

494 had somehow triggered the failsafe. No doubt Eyes Only was involved and tried to mess with the tracker. It would certainly make White's job a hell of a lot easier to just sit back and wait for the pain in the ass transgenic to implode. Decisions, decisions…

"Sir?" one of his men prompted, asking for instructions on how to proceed.

"Hold your position, soldier," Ames ordered. He checked his watch, and he waited.

DA-DA-DA

Max's eyes widened and she turned back to Alec as Dr. Carr strode forward and put the stethoscope back in his ears. He knelt by the hunched over transgenic and listened carefully to his abdomen.

"Joshua's right. The tracker is beeping much faster than before. It's now or never, Alec. You've got to get it out."

"I'm trying!" Alec growled, the desperation evident in his voice. "…Where's the bottle?"

Lydecker quickly retrieved the Ipecac from the living room and tossed it to Alec who caught it deftly. The younger man opened the bottle and started gulping the rest of its contents down before he could second-guess himself.

"Alec, wait!" Sam yelled and tried to pull the bottle away, but by the time he managed it, Alec had already drained all the contents. The X5 instantly turned a pale shade of green and started retching again to the point at which it was difficult to draw in a breath between heaves.

That's when he felt it. A sharp pain ignited where his esophagus met his stomach and was slowly moving upwards like the worst case of heartburn he had ever experienced. It wasn't natural for an object of that size to go _down_ his throat, let alone back up it as well.

Unbidden tears began to stream down his flushed cheeks as he struggled to stay calm. Another clench from his stomach forced the tracker up another inch or so and his hand immediately moved to his upper chest as if hoping he could just reach inside and pull the damn thing out. He looked up at Max with barely controlled panic in his eyes.

"Max, I… I can't do this."

Max knelt down on the cold tiles next to Alec. "You have to, Alec. There's no other option now."

Sam rose to his feet to give them some space, wet a washcloth in the sink, and handed it to Max. She draped the cold compress over Alec's sweaty neck, gently massaging the taut skin beneath it.

She pulled his fingers away from his chest and held them tightly in her own, letting him squeeze back as hard as he wanted. Anything to help ease the pain. Max used her free hand to brush a few strands of loose hair away from his pale face.

She couldn't help but think how all this was her fault. The poor guy always seemed to pay for her mistakes lately. The guilt was tearing her up inside, but not quite as literally as what the tracker was doing to Alec.

Another dry heave left him shaking and his skin broke out in a cold sweat. Max inched closer to share her body heat. She started rubbing circles on his over-heated back, feeling the toned muscles alternately clench and relax as they involuntarily responded to the pain.

When the large object finally reached the back of his throat, it cut off his breath entirely and Alec began to choke.

Dr. Carr immediately slid in behind the distressed transgenic, and began performing the Heimlich maneuver. Alec's fingers clenched bone-crushingly tight around the toilet bowl lid and Max's hand as he fought to remain conscious.

The rest of the Ipecac medicine, mixed with various stomach acids, was building up behind the tracker and burning his esophagus. He could hear the beeping now, just below the sound of blood pounding in his ears. It almost sounded like he was underwater, and thanks to his screaming lungs, it was starting to feel like it too.

Max thumped Alec hard on the back, using transgenic strength Sam couldn't have dreamed of possessing, and Alec felt the cylindrical tracker dislodge. The rest of the contents of his stomach rushed out of his mouth in a violent fountain and the tracker landed in the water with a loud _sploosh!_

Alec gasped in air and felt the last dregs of energy threatening to leave him. He slumped back down against the porcelain but someone was tugging persistently at his arm and he was too tired to shake them off.

"We have to get him out of here," Sam's voice floated over Alec as his vision seemed to haze over and black spots flashed in front of his eyes.

"I'll get Alec," Max assured the doctor. "Just run!"

Alec felt himself being pulled into Max's embrace. His head lolled onto her shoulder and he didn't have the strength to lift it back up, not that he really wanted to. Even though she was much smaller than him, he always felt safe around her- especially in her arms- but those were rare occasions to say the least. He'd take what he could get.

Dr. Carr scrambled to his feet and raced out of the bathroom door, clearing a path for Max and her charge. Max flushed the toilet, then began dragging Alec's weak body towards the living room.

He may have been a third of Brain's size, but Alec was all muscle and heavy as hell. They weren't moving fast enough. He tried to help but his legs were barely cooperating.

"Joshua, I need you!" Max called out, her voice echoing through Alec's head.

Josh made it to her side in two long strides and pulled Alec into his arms as easily as if he were a rag doll. They all moved to the far end of the living room and Lydecker slammed the bathroom door shut behind them. They waited with bated breath, Max and Josh using their bodies to shield Alec's limp form, but nothing happened.

After a few moments, Lydecker turned to look at his panting children. "Well that was a bit anti-climatic…"

"What happened?" Max asked the older man, a sharp edge to her tone.

Lydecker shrugged. "Must have been a dud. Guess they didn't quite get all the bugs out yet."

DA-DA-DA

Ames grudgingly removed his finger from the freshly pressed kill switch. So maybe he felt some twisted satisfaction in waiting until the very last second before disarming the explosive. In a job like his, you had to take your pleasures where you could get them.

It wasn't like he was going to actually let the bomb go off. Renfro would do more than ruin his career if he let her favorite pet bite the proverbial bullet. Besides, there was no way he was going to let 494 off that easily.

With a heavy sigh, White flipped the tracking equipment off and handed it to one of his lackeys to carry. He wouldn't need it anymore now that the device was no doubt making its way through the sewers. Not that it really mattered at this point. He knew where his target was.

"Time to bring our boy home," he said aloud, addressing his soldiers. "Do _not _shoot to kill. I want them all taken alive, understood? Move out."

DA-DA-DA

Max patted Alec's cheek, trying to get him to focus his blurry gaze on her. "You did it, Alec. The tracker's gone. They can't find you now." She smiled down at him and the corners of his lips pulled up slightly in return as his eyes slid shut. He was so damn tired.

"We need to go," Lydecker stated as he stood over Max and Alec. "We can't afford to take any chances."

"He's barely conscious," Max protested. "He needs time to rest."

"Time is a luxury we don't have. Get him up."

"But…!"

"That's an order, soldier!" Lydecker barked.

"Hey!" Logan admonished in response. "Take it easy!"

"Back off, Cale! This doesn't concern you!"

"The hell it doesn't!"

No one noticed that Alec had begun to seize again until Joshua whimpered in fear. Max looked down to see the transhuman attempting to cradle Alec in his arms and restrict his flailing.

"No! Don't!" Sam cautioned the overgrown puppy. "Put him down and give him space." The doctor helped Josh ease his friend to the floor, then shoved a nearby lamp table out of the way so Alec wouldn't hurt himself on it.

Sam grabbed a pillow off the couch and slid it under the kid's head so he wouldn't thrash backwards and crack his skull on the floor. He kept one eye on his watch as he worked around the convulsing transgenic, mentally keeping track of how long the tremors lasted.

"I need my bag," he ordered over his shoulder and held his hand out. Sure enough, someone slid the straps into his awaiting fingers seconds later. He didn't bother looking up to find out who it was.

Searching through the vials in the bottom of the bag, he pulled out one labeled Lorazepam and began filling a syringe. "Hang in there, buddy. Help is coming…"

He jabbed the needle into the side of Alec's thigh and slowly pressed down on the plunger. Once the medication had been released, Sam massaged the muscle to get it to circulate faster.

It was almost another full minute before Alec stilled. Dr. Carr knelt by him seconds later and carefully pulled him onto his side in case the seizure forced him to throw up again, but considering there was nothing left in the poor kid's stomach, vomiting was the least of the doc's concerns. Better safe than sorry though.

He lifted Alec's eyelids to check the responsiveness of his pupils but the boy remained unconscious. His breathing sounded shallow and labored like he had just run a marathon, and his shoulder was bleeding freely again. The guy was a mess.

Sam sat back on his heels with a resigned sigh. "I can patch up the superficial stuff, Max, but as far as his head's concerned… They've altered his brain's normal electrical activity. There's nothing I can do. I'm sorry. I know you don't want to hear it, but Manticore might be his best chance."

"No," Max stated before even considering the proposal. "They're not gonna take him again."

"There may not be any other option."

"I said no! We'll find another way." Max crouched down on the floor near Alec's head and ran her fingers soothingly through his soft hair. He was burning up more than ever now, almost enough to make her second guess her resolve. _Almost_.

The doctor nodded slowly in understanding. "Then I suggest you get him used to the blindfold because if his seizures keep getting worse, they're going to do irreparable damage."

A feeble cough left Alec's lips and drew Max's attention. She slid her hand down to his cheek and caressed it gently with her thumb, hoping to help guide him back to consciousness. "Alec? Can you hear me?"

He suddenly jerked backward and latched onto her wrist, fear and anger in his expression, but it wasn't directed at her. Max immediately drew as far away as she could, hoping he didn't snap her arm before she could get through to him.

"Alec! It's okay! It's just me!"

His mixed emotions slowly funneled into a state of confusion as he looked at her surprised face and then at everyone else in the room, all of whom seemed frozen where they stood.

"Max?" He eased his grip but didn't release her. He needed her undivided attention. "Max, they're comin'."

TBC

Your message worked, lacrymosa94! Haha Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and more to come as soon as I can get it down on paper. Please keep the reviews coming as inspiration! You guys are the best!


	16. Outgunned

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22. Just as a head's up, this chapter jumps fully into the AU category! My original intent was to stay true to the series itself, but the outcome wouldn't have been very exciting haha Enjoy!

Before anyone had the chance to move, the windows in Logan's apartment shattered and his door splintered into pieces as it was forcefully kicked open. White's team flooded the small enclosure and Ames himself strode proudly through the wreckage.

Lydecker was the first to pull the trigger, having taken Alec's warning to heart and drawn his pistol. After that, the apartment erupted into total chaos. Completely unarmed, Logan ducked down behind one of his expensive couches, using his arms to shield his head.

Joshua was heading straight for their attackers with a furious bellow of rage that was barely audible over the resounding bursts of gunfire. Alec was trying his best to push the pain away and get to his feet but he was having a hell of a time of it. He settled for crawling his way behind another piece of furniture to use as a bunker.

One of White's men had his gun trained on Josh's back but Max blurred over to the soldier, pulled the gun from his hands, and proceeded to knock him out with it.

"Alec!" she yelled above the din to get his attention, then tossed the weapon to him. She didn't like guns, but he seemed to have an affinity for them.

He caught the assault rifle easily and turned it on the guy who was coming up behind him. White's team was layered in protective gear so the shot to the chest didn't penetrate far enough to kill, but it definitely threw the guy back a few feet and knocked the wind out of his lungs. It would be a while before the young man tried something like that again.

Joshua was fairing better than any of them at this point, overpowering the soldiers with sheer strength, but Max needed him elsewhere. She needed to get Logan out of there before Manticore got their hands on Eyes Only. "Joshua!"

The dog-boy looked over his shoulder at her, one arm pinning a soldier to the wall by his throat. He read her hand gestures and immediately got the message. _Get Logan somewhere safe._ He nodded.

As soon as the man in his grasp went limp, Josh dropped him to the floor and focused on his new mission. He quickly spotted Logan who was trying to get his hands on another fallen soldier's weapon. Every time he reached towards it, however, the flying debris would force him to pull back again.

Max was fighting her way towards White now, barely controlled fury coursing through her body. If you cut the head off the snake… Take White down, and the rest of his men would follow.

Ames turned to her with a sadistic smirk on his face. He was taking in the carnage and enjoying it like a kid at a fireworks display. Max unleashed a series of well placed jabs to drop another guy to his knees and then she froze.

Her sights had been trained solely on White since his grand entrance, but now that she was getting closer, she realized the handful of men and women surrounding him were not the average soldiers that had flooded the rest of the building. His personal armed guard was made up of Familiars, and they were just itching for her to make the first move.

No wonder he was looking so cocky. They were screwed. She glanced around the room again, noting their odds of winning this fight. Alec was laying down cover fire while Josh smuggled Logan out. Just as the duo cleared the doorway into a backroom, Alec's gun clicked. The magazine was empty.

White sighed with feigned boredom. The predator was sick of playing with its prey. "Round them up!" he shouted to the Familiars and they happily sprang into action.

DA-DA-DA

Logan led Joshua to the back wall- or at least, what appeared to be the back wall- of his bedroom. A small panel hidden behind two large books in the neighboring bookshelf opened a sliding door. It was impossible to see unless you knew exactly where to look for the small creases amidst the lines of the wallpaper.

"I had a few modifications built in case one of my hacks got traced," he explained.

Behind the door was a small compartment with a lift instead of a floor. "This leads down to some of the old tunnels under the city. I haven't been down there in years, but if I remember correctly, they should take us a safe distance away from here and White's men."

Josh nodded in understanding and clapped Logan on the back, nearly shoving him into the tiny room. "You blaze!"

Logan shook his head. "Not without Max. We've got to get her outta there."

"You first, then Max. Go now." Joshua shoved him again, this time succeeding in knocking Logan onto the lift.

"Joshua, no! Wait! I can't just… Behind you!"

Josh whirled around to find two Familiars closing in on him. He snarled, backing towards the lift to keep himself between them and Logan.

"Come here, boy!" one of them jeered, patting his leg and whistling. "Good doggy!"

Joshua bared his teeth but then his eyes widened in surprise as a hand latched onto his shirt and jerked him backwards. He stumbled into the lift and Logan hit a button. The door immediately slid shut and they could hear the angry Familiars banging on it from the other side.

The gears grinded as the lift began to lower itself. The shouting and gunfire was getting more and more distant by the second. They were safe, for now.

DA-DA-DA

Lydecker had taken down a handful of White's people before he took a bullet in the right shoulder. Refusing to let it slow him down, he switched hands and began shooting with his left. There was no time for pain or damage assessments during the heat of battle. Shortly after, a second bullet- this time to the thigh- dropped him to his knees.

The remaining men from White's team swarmed on him like vultures on road kill. They wrestled him to the ground and disarmed him. One of the soldiers twisted his arms upward to the point of being just shy of dislocating and another knelt on his back, which made it hard to breathe and minimized his struggling.

Alec had managed to make it onto his feet and was putting up a valiant fight. He took two soldiers out with bone-crushing punches to the face and snapped another man's neck. He didn't have his usual catlike grace and he didn't appear all that steady, but he was holding his own.

Max fought her way back to Alec's side. She was going to protect him at all costs. They locked eyes for a moment, a wordless agreement passing between the two of them, and then they both turned, preparing to fight back-to-back.

They made an incredible team; Alec with his strength and speed, and Max with her agility and finesse. For a brief moment, she thought they were going to make it out of there. Then she heard Alec's cry of pain.

Distracted, she turned to find that one of the Familiars had gotten close enough to jab a taser into his chest. The fact that he was shirtless and sweating certainly didn't provide him any protection from the electric charge that was now coursing through his body.

He would've dropped to the floor if it hadn't been for the Familiar's trunk-like arm that wrapped around his neck and held him tightly in place. The distraction worked exactly as it was planned to, leaving Max's back unprotected as she turned to help him.

A taser was quickly shoved between her shoulder blades and her muscles seized. Snapping her head back, she managed to break her captor's nose, which in turn forced him to release her but it was a fleeting reprieve.

Another of White's Familiars, a woman this time, quickly took her comrade's place and tasered Max in the side. She fell to her hands and knees with a grunt and seconds later, she felt the vibrations of impact travel through the floorboards as Alec collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Max didn't know if he had succumbed to the electrical current or if the tree of a man behind him had choked him out. Panic and desperation burned through her gut as she watched his chest with bated breath. A wave of relief rolled over her when she saw that he was in fact still breathing, albeit shallowly.

Two sets of strong hands quickly subdued her before she could regain control of her legs and her arms were cuffed behind her back. She pulled against them in frustration, but knew that she had been beaten.

White strolled forward as if he had all the time in the world. He squatted down in front of Lydecker with an amused shake of his head. "Didn't think I'd ever see your ugly mug again, old man."

"Believe me, the pleasure is all yours," Lydecker grumbled, still looking for a way to dislodge the guy on his back.

"I don't know why, but I always assumed you'd be taller. Bit of a letdown if you ask me."

Ames stood back up, then made his way over to his other two captives. He stared down at Alec's twitching body and Max tensed at the sinister glint in his eyes. When an aftershock caused the transgenic's body to convulse again, White seized the taser from his closest soldier and dug it brutally into Alec's stomach.

"Stop it!" Max shouted at the man as she watched Alec flail uncontrollably.

"That's enough!" Lydecker roared from his uncomfortable position on the floor a few feet away. "You're gonna kill 'im!"

"You promise?" White finally let up and tossed the taser aside, dusting his hands off as he rose to his feet once again. He caught the murderous glare Max was sending his way and shrugged innocently. "What? He was still moving. Looked to me like he was tryin' to escape." He narrowed his eyes pointedly at her. "Don't make the same mistake."

Max had enough insults bottled up that she could have filled an entire dictionary, but she wisely held her tongue. She would get her revenge, but this wasn't the time or the place for it.

"Besides," he added with a shit-eating grin on his face. "That was nothing compared to what he went through at Manticore."

Before Max's self-control snapped completely, Lydecker spoke again. "What level?"

White turned back to him in confusion. "Come again?"

"What level did you use to forge the connection?"

"They started him off easy, but we weren't getting any results. Once we cranked it up to ten though, he was a lot more receptive."

"You son of a bitch…" the older man growled. That machine was never meant to go any higher than six, and even that was pushing the limit. By all intents and purposes, Alec should be dead right now. Apparently, the kid just refused to die.

"Load the two of them into the truck," White ordered his men, waving vaguely towards the two transgenics.

"Sir? What about him?" the guy kneeling on Lydecker's back asked.

"As far as we're concerned, he's already dead. No reason to disappoint the higher-ups now. Take care of him after we're gone and dispose of all the bodies." He glanced around at the fallen soldiers without the slightest hint of remorse. "Make sure they can't be identified, understood? Then clean this mess up."

Max knew from the Manticore handbook that "cleaning a mess up" meant torching the place so no evidence was left behind. It was faster than scrubbing away blood stains. _Sorry, Logan…_

She was jerked up by her arms and manhandled out the door. She could tell by the dragging sound that Alec was close behind, his sneakers no doubt scuffing up the floors as he dangled helplessly between two of the Familiars.

Max prayed to the Blue Lady that Logan and Joshua made it out safely.

DA-DA-DA

Logan used his cell phone to light the tunnel as he led Josh down the semi-familiar twists and turns. "We shouldn't have left them," he admonished aloud, more to himself than to the trans-human.

"Max said to get you safe. You're safe," Joshua stated as if that were all that mattered.

"They were completely outgunned! Not even Lydecker could've wriggled them out of that one. It was hard enough for them to break out of Manticore the first time, but Renfro is no fool. She won't make the same mistakes twice."

"True enough, but Little Fella has something Renfro does not," Josh said with a confident grin on his face.

"And what would that be?" Logan asked, sounding more than a little skeptical.

"Us. Little Fella has us."

TBC

Thank you all so much for your supportive reviews and patience! Sorry again for taking so long to post, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please keep those comments coming! If there's anything you want to see happen, feel free to make requests as well!

Special shout-outs go to my lovelies 25rhieannerain, Lacrymosa94, and of course, scifigeek22 for their inspiring words and constant encouragement. I love you all!


	17. A Reason to Panic

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Pain. That was the first thing that registered in Alec's mind as he started coming around. He was laying on a hard, cold surface, but his head was cushioned on something soft and warm. Muscles he didn't even know he had ached and it felt like his brain had been torn to shreds.

He groaned miserably and tried to crack his eyes open, but then he realized there was a gentle weight holding them closed. Was he blindfolded again? Where was he? What had happened?

Alec reached up to uncover his eyes and jolted in surprise when his hand came in contact with skin instead of cloth. The memories of White's raid immediately came flooding back to him. Last time he woke up at Manticore with someone touching him, it had been Renfro's skeletal fingers. Needless to say, he panicked.

"Get off me!" Alec pulled at the hand with what little strength he could muster and managed a quick glimpse of a blurry face looking down at him before his wrist was captured in a tight grip and the hand fastened more securely over his eyes.

"Alec, take it easy!"

He was too focused on escaping to pay enough attention to the voice. His other arm came up and took a swing at his unseen opponent but that wrist was quickly captured as well. He started writhing on the floor, the rough cement scratching the skin of his bare back, but he didn't care. "Let me go!" he growled in frustration.

"Alec!" the voice tried again, this time louder and more forceful. "It's okay! It's just me!"

He paused in his fighting, trying to understand what was happening. "Max?" he gasped out.

She scoffed, the huff of air ruffling Alec's bangs. "Who else would it be?"

Alec really didn't want to answer that. He came back with a question of his own instead. "Where are we?"

Now it was Max's turn to fall silent and Alec suddenly felt cold, inside and out. Her reluctance to respond was a pretty obvious sign that they were back at Manticore, but there was something else she wasn't telling him- he could feel it- and it sure as hell wasn't anything good.

There was only one place in Manticore that he could think of that would keep Max tight-lipped like this. His throat closed up and it felt like his lungs were on fire, probably due to the rush of adrenaline that was bombarding his system. God, it burned.

He needed to see where he was so he could verify his suspicions. He needed to know what state the two of them were in and what they were up against. He needed to get up off the cold floor so he could breathe. And he really needed to not be back at Manticore.

Alec tried to sit up but Max increased the pressure of her hold, keeping him pinned to the ground. She knew if he tried to get up now he'd probably pass out again. "Breathe, Alec. I'm right here, okay? Just keep your eyes closed and try to calm down."

The fact that she wouldn't let him sit up made his heart beat even faster, and consequently, made the pain worse. "I've gotta move, Max," he practically whimpered. "Please. It… It hurts."

She winced in sympathy. Having a panic attack felt like running a marathon and then stopping short without any cool down. She knew it would have been easier on Alec if she let him get up and pace a bit, walking off the adrenaline rush with time, but uncovering his eyes was not an option right now. Seeing where he was would only make it worse.

"You know the procedure, soldier. Knees up. Take a deep breath and hold it."

Alec pulled his legs in as he was told, his muscles feeling sluggish in their response. If he weren't so terrified, he would have found the humor in this situation. He was raised to be a cold-blooded killer, fast at healing and afraid of nothing. He was supposed to kill without conscience and lie his way into peoples' lives with a big smile on his face.

And yet, here he was, having a panic attack because he woke up in the dark. Okay, to be fair, it wasn't the darkness that bothered him, but the unknown. His eyesight was more crucial to him than he would care to admit, even in the dark of night when average humans were blind. He had the cat DNA to thank for that.

At least back at Logan's, he knew the place fairly well and could draw a mental map to guide himself when he was blindfolded. But right now, he had no idea if he was in a cavernous room, or a small coffin-like box. He didn't know if it was morning or night. He didn't know if they were surrounded by the enemy or if they were alone.

And as the questions quickly piled up in his mind, it wasn't hard for them to become overwhelming. Thankfully, Max knew how to get through to him and did what she could to keep him grounded.

She guided Alec's trapped wrists down to his chest and used her thumb to brush lightly over his sternum in a slow rhythm intended to ease his ragged breathing. Back and forth… Back and forth…

All the while, she murmured soft words of comfort to him. After a few minutes, he had regained most of his control and the lightheadedness was starting to abate. As soon as he knew that standing up wouldn't drop him on his ass again, he assumed Max would be mollified enough to let him go.

He attempted to pull his wrists from her slackened grasp once more, but her grip redoubled to an almost painful level. She knew she was prolonging the inevitable, but the longer she could keep him from seeing where they were, the better.

"Don't fight me on this one, Alec," Max warned. "I promise it's for your own good." Cause _that _didn't sound ominous at all.

"Max, what…?" He broke off, the words refusing to come out of his mouth. Maybe he didn't want to know what was happening after all. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized he _needed_ to know. He tried again, changing tactics a bit. "Why are you doin' this?"

"You've been out for almost five hours," she explained quietly. "Another vision on top of that could put you down for good."

Five hours? He had been unconscious and in Manticore's hands for _five hours?!_ They could've done anything they wanted to him in that time. For all he knew, they could've turned him into a bionic robot like they did to Zack.

He tried to swallow past the lump in his throat but his mouth was too dry. He ended up making a choking noise instead, alerting Max to his renewed distress. She could feel his heart pounding beneath their entwined hands as the infinite amount of horrible possibilities flashed through his mind.

She had to say something or he was going to fall apart right in her arms. Max released his wrists in favor of using her whole hand to rub circles over his chest. She remembered having done the same to Ben when they were kids and he woke up screaming from nightmares.

She pushed the memory away. This wasn't Ben. It was Alec, and he needed her help.

"Shh… Hey. It's okay, Alec. Try to relax and listen to me. You haven't left my side since they brought us in here, alright? Renfro's lapdogs have checked in on occasion to see if you were awake yet, but other than that, we've been alone. I didn't let them hurt you. Trust me on that."

Considering his childhood and how he was raised, trust wasn't something that came to Alec easily and she knew she was asking a lot of him. But Max wasn't just anyone. She had saved his ass countless times in the past and he did feel safer around her, even if she made him feel like a burden more often than not.

He let out a steadying breath and finally submitted. Sight wasn't his only sense. If she wasn't going to tell him where he was, he could fall back on his other senses and try to piece it all together. As she eased up on him again, Alec took the opportunity to turn his head slightly, rolling it across his pillow and trying to pick up on any sounds he could recognize that might help him get started.

Except, once his head moved, he felt the pillow shift beneath him and a muscle- not one of his own- twitched against the base of his neck. Thinking back on the angle he had glimpsed Max at during his brief moment of freedom, he realized they were positioned perpendicular to each other and that meant… Oh, god.

He prayed that the room was dark enough to hide his blushing cheeks. His head was cradled in Max's lap. Aside from their short stint in the strip club where Max had given him a pathetic excuse for a lap dance, they had never been this close to one another without bodily injury being involved. Not that the thought hadn't crossed his mind from time to time, but this was reality!

He automatically tensed up again, terrified that he'd move in the wrong direction and either make the situation more awkward than it already was, or that he'd ruin an otherwise perfect moment he was sure would never happen to him a second time.

Max felt the tension increase in his neck where it rested on her thigh and glanced down at him in concern. Was he in a lot of pain? Was he having another vision, regardless of how careful she had been in trying to prevent it? "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he quickly responded, then fumbled for an excuse. "Just… Just a headache."

Max sighed in relief. Her hand left his chest and he felt her nails rake lightly through his hair, drawing the locks back and away from his forehead. Alec blinked his eyes open in surprise beneath her other hand and she felt his long eyelashes tickle her palm.

"Eyes closed, Alec," she instructed and he shut them again obediently, giving in to her mother-henning.

She smiled, the direness of their situation taking a backburner momentarily. Max could tell Alec trusted her, and in their world, that meant everything. There was a time she would have gladly shot him herself just to get him out of her life, but lately she has been warring with an intense feeling of protectiveness towards her transgenic companion.

He had suffered through more than enough over the past few days and now she wanted to take all his pain away. Instead, she was an integral part of causing it. As if she didn't have enough guilt on her conscious as far as her brothers and sisters were concerned.

The tension slowly left Alec's body as he lay there on the floor, the rhythmic combing of Max's fingers through his hair helping him to drop his guard. For a while, she thought he had fallen asleep. But then he spoke.

"Max, promise me somethin'."

She was already shaking her head, regardless of the fact that he couldn't see it. "Uh uh. We're not playin' that game again."

"I'm serious, okay? If we are where I think we are," he swallowed hard, pushing the thought away, "things aren't gonna end well for us. We both know what they're after."

"So what's your point?"

"Just… Don't let them use me against you this time, alright?"

She scoffed again. "What do you think I'm gonna do, Alec? Sit back and let them kill you instead?"

"No, Max. Not them." There was something important in the way he said those words, some sort of finality in his voice that made her blood run cold. Then it clicked. She knew what he was asking and suddenly felt sick.

Max had told him, not long ago, what had happened to Ben out in the woods. He _knew_ what that did to her. How could he be asking her to do it again?

"Shut up."

"Max…"

"I said shut up, Alec!" She took a moment to compose herself before continuing. "You're not takin' the easy way outta this. We're both getting' outta here alive, understand? And if you even _think_ about giving up before then, I'll kick your ass. Are we clear?"

Overwhelmed by a myriad of emotions ranging from disappointment to relief, Alec croaked out a simple, "yeah."

"What was that?"

Alec fell back on his old military ways, just as Max had planned. "Yes, ma'am." There was no way they were going to get out of this if he kept his defeatist attitude. She needed him to fight.

"Pull yourself together, soldier. This battle isn't over yet."

_Fat lotta help I'm gonna be fightin' blind. _"Guess I better start learnin' some Jedi mind tricks then, huh?"

Before Max had the chance to ask what the heck a Jedi was, a door to her left swung open and Madame Renfro sauntered in, a smarmy smile on her face. "Together again at last, my little ones; just as it was meant to be. I see he's finally awake. So… Shall we get started?"

TBC

Thank you all for the PMs and reviews! This chapter was more emotion than action so I hope it wasn't too boring! More to come in the near future. Please keep reviewing!


	18. Foiled By Fever

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Together again at last, my little ones; just as it was meant to be. I see he's finally awake. So… Shall we get started?"

"He's not strong enough yet," Max practically growled at the deformed old woman.

"I think he's stronger than you give him credit for," Renfro responded, her eyes locked on Alec's vulnerable body. It made Max's skin crawl. She was glad Alec couldn't see the hunger in the woman's eyes. "Both of you, on your feet."

"Last chance, Max," Alec stated, keeping his voice low so only she could hear him. There was a pleading edge to his tone, regardless of how hard he tried to sound neutral.

_Last chance… Last chance to end this before it gets any worse. Last chance to put me out of my misery and then save yourself. _She knew what he was asking of her, but it wasn't something she could give. Not after Ben.

"I can't," she whispered back brokenly. "I'm sorry."

He swallowed hard but gave an almost imperceptible nod of acceptance. He was resigned to his fate now that he knew there would be no other option.

Renfro rapped her knuckles on the heavy metal door and six well-trained soldiers filed in with White bringing up the rear. She quirked an eyebrow at the agent with a mixture of disapproval and curiosity in her gaze.

"Shouldn't you be out searching for the two you let escape?"

"They won't get far. Just wanted to make sure things didn't go sideways again in here," he responded. "494 threw up his leash earlier and I'd rather not have to chase him all over town for the second time tonight."

"Don't you worry, Ames. These two aren't going anywhere. And if you had been successful in their recovery, we'd have four prisoners right now and you'd have the night off."

"As if," White grumbled under his breath.

Renfro either didn't hear him or chose to ignore him. "Lucky for you though, I have a feeling the others will be coming to us instead. Just be sure you're prepared for when they do."

"I'm always prepared, ma'am." Ames failed to hide the resentment in his voice, but again, the old woman ignored him.

"You three," she directed instead towards the closest soldiers who had entered the room first. "Get X-5 494 up and prepped for testing. The rest of you, guard the door. We will _not_ be interrupted this time."

She unlocked the holding cell the transgenics were incarcerated in, then stood back to let the soldiers file through. Max drew up her knees slightly, trying to form any kind of barrier she could between Alec and those who wanted to hurt him.

She guided his head against her stomach, cradling him like a child, as she glared up at the intruders. Max took a breath to tell the soldiers what they could do with their "orders" when Alec finally managed to pull his hands free of her grip. He patted her restraining forearm gently and said, "It's okay, Maxie. Let me up."

But it wasn't okay. She knew how much this room terrified him and the last thing she wanted to do was let him open his eyes. The longer she could keep him in the dark, the longer he'd be able to hold onto his sanity. "Alec, I…"

He encircled her wrist that was covering his eyes with a firm, but not painful, pressure and gave the joint a light squeeze for reassurance. "It's okay, really," he placated softly, almost as if he already knew. Had she let something slip? Had he known all along where he was?

Sure enough, when he eased her hand away from his eyes, he winced as the bright lights of the psy-ops room assaulted him but the panic and surprise she was expecting to see in his expression weren't there.

For a moment, his gaze met hers and he managed the smallest of smiles. "Nothin' I haven't survived before, right?" He meant it to be comforting but the quiver in his voice ruined the effect.

Max could feel Alec shaking in her arms again as he tried his hardest to stay strong. He didn't want her to get involved and potentially hurt in the process. The worst part was, Max didn't have a clue what Alec was up against. At least, not yet.

She had slipped free of Manticore's clutches at a young age and never once had to visit psy-ops for evaluation. According to Alec, things had gotten much worse after the '09 escape- especially for the twins of the escapees- and she was about to find out just how bad they had gotten.

Alec struggled his way into a sitting position and held up his arms in submission just as the guards surrounded him and yanked him to his feet. He stumbled for a second but managed to find his balance relatively quickly.

They spun him around, jerked his hands behind his back, and twisted his arms high enough to make him hiss through his teeth at the pain. The rough handling of his wounded shoulder probably didn't help much either.

"Take it easy!" Max barked at the true blue soldiers. "He's injured!"

It's not like they couldn't see the bloody bandage, Alec being shirtless and all. They just didn't seem to care. And boy did that piss off Max to no end.

She forced herself to her feet, but before she could go to Alec's aid, she was shoved face-first into the metal bars of the cage. She hadn't even seen White approaching. He held a taser to her neck.

"Down, kitty," he said scathingly in her ear. "You'll get your chance to play with the docs soon enough. You so much as twitch ahead of schedule though and I'll drop you."

Max watched helplessly as the soldiers manhandled Alec out of the holding cell and into the main room of psy-ops.

"Time to sit back and watch the show," Ames gloated. "I could really go for a bowl of popcorn right about now, you?"

Max ignored the man, her attention staying focused on Alec, tracking him as he was escorted to one of the many intricate chairs designed to hold patients and prisoners alike.

The soldier directly behind the transgenic released Alec's wrists and gave him a rough shove towards the dreaded seat and Alec tensed, whirling around with the intent of putting his fist through the guy's head.

"Uh uh uh… I wouldn't do that if I were you," White sneered.

Alec glanced past the soldier in front of him and caught a glimpse of Max's precarious situation. His hackles immediately rose and he wanted nothing more than to feel the man's vertebrae snapping beneath his bare hands.

"You're a coward, Ames," he stated simply, spitting the words out as fact. What else can you call a man who hides behind a woman?

"Takes one to know one, 494. Cooperate or I put her down. Your choice."

Alec forced himself to relax and started walking backwards with his hands out to his sides- keeping the herding soldiers in his sights- until the backs of his knees hit the reclined chair.

A shiver raced up his spine as he felt the cold, cruel metal through his jeans. He glanced around the room, taking in Renfro, the six soldiers keeping watch of the only exit in the place, and of Max, still locked up in the holding cell with White's weapon at her throat. There were no options and he knew it.

Grudgingly, he eased himself onto the icy chair and tried not to gasp as it came in contact with his bare back. Renfro moved towards him and kept the soldiers nearby just in case Alec had any bright ideas. "Arm," she demanded, smirking down at him.

She knew he would feel obliged to comply, and she was taking great pleasure in making him an accessory to his own torture. That was the fastest way to break someone after all. Renfro waited patiently as Alec slowly lifted his arm, hesitated for a moment, then placed it on the unforgiving armrest, curling his fingers tightly over the edge of it.

"Good boy." She locked the restraint securely around his wrist, giving it a tug just for good measure. Alec winced.

Less than a minute later, she had his other arm, both ankles, and his upper chest fastened to the contraption. At first, Alec lifted his head far enough to watch the proceedings, part of him realizing the masochistic need to see what was happening to him.

But when the last restraint clicked into place, he dropped his head back against the plastic cushion that was clearly not designed for comfort and stared blankly up at the ceiling.

Max curled her fingers tightly around the bars in front of her, frustration building inside of her till she felt like imploding. She wanted to yell out to Renfro to leave him alone, to tell Alec to get out of there and not to submit, but she knew he had no chance of winning the fight in his current state. All she could do was be there for him to pick up the pieces when all was said and done.

The exam started off simple enough; a blood test from Alec's inner left elbow, his BP and heart rate stats were noted, both of which were understandably a little high, and his temperature was taken with a thermal scan but Renfro wasn't too happy when she saw the results.

She placed the back of her hand against Alec's forehead- trusting her own inner gauge over the medical equipment's- and her frown deepened.

"Are you ill, soldier?" Renfro asked him.

"I will be if you don't get your claws offa me," he mumbled.

A loud zap resonated through the room and Max cried out, alerting Alec to the fact that White had just given him a warning. He sighed, sending up a silent apology to Max. He was never going to learn to behave himself.

"I meant no, _ma'am_," he growled through clenched teeth, trying to reign in his anger.

"You're lying," Renfro hissed near his ear as she palpated the swollen glands in his throat, forcing him to swallow painfully. Stomach acid had a tendency to burn through your esophagus if you regurgitated enough of it.

He shifted on the chair in discomfort, trying to pull away from her cold, prodding hands. Renfro slid her hand down to his injured shoulder and peeled off the bloody bandage. Alec almost threw up again. The pain was excruciating and it didn't take a genius to figure out the bullet hole was infected.

Almost three inches of skin around the wound was covered in spidery red streaks and was puffy and inflamed. Most of the stitches had been pulled by now and blood was still oozing sluggishly down his arm. Renfro walked over to a COM system, paging Dr. Bradbury to their location, stat.

Max had enough experience in hospitals and clinics to know that "stat" was never indicative of anything good. She had no idea who this Bradbury guy was, but judging by Alec's sudden pallor, he was more foe than friend.

"What's wrong with him?" she called across the room, briefly meeting Alec's fever bright eyes before he looked away again. White gave her a short jerk, threatening to electrocute her a second time if she stepped out of line in any way.

"You can't tell?" Renfro sneered back, circling around the chair Alec was strapped to as if she were stalking her prey, slowly closing in for the kill. She leaned against the side of the chair, carding her fingers through Alec's hair while she waited for the doc to show. "Guess the connect only works one way, huh? That hardly seems fair."

Max scoffed. "As if you have a clue of what fairness means…"

"Now now, no need to get nasty," White reprimanded, his chin practically resting on Max's shoulder as he watched Renfro torment 494. And it wasn't even his birthday.

Renfro ran one finger from her free hand around the irritated skin near Alec's collarbone. He tensed but didn't dare move.

"You know, it's probably a good thing you can't sense what he's feeling. He must be in agony at this point. You lucked out, 452. But I wonder… Maybe you'll feel this instead," she smirked, then tightened her grasp in Alec's hair, pulling his head back at an awkward angle, and jamming their lips together.

There was nothing romantic about it. She was staking a claim on him, plain and simple. As if the barcodes on their necks weren't big enough reminders that the government owned them.

Max pulled furiously at the bars as White chuckled behind her. Alec's eyes had gone wide with panic and he struggled to pull away but had nowhere to go. When Renfro finally released him, he broke away with a spluttering cough and then spit at the woman to show her just what he thought of her kissing skills. What he wouldn't do for a bottle of mouthwash right about now…

Renfro patted his cheek condescendingly, keeping her eyes locked onto Max's, clearly trying to rile her up. Max bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from giving the horrible woman exactly what she wanted.

"Still didn't feel anything, huh?" Renfro needled. "Pity, cause I did. Don't you worry, 452. I'll take good care of our boy." Her hand stroked possessively over Alec's chest, forcing him to shudder, mainly in disgust. He refused to look up at the woman and instead stared at the door, too ashamed to turn to Max for any comfort either.

He was almost grateful when the knock came, announcing the short medic's arrival. He bustled through the door, paused long enough to shoot Max a surprised look having apparently only expected to find 494 in the room, then moved to Renfro's side.

"494 is burning up," the woman stated clinically, bringing the younger man up to speed. "His body was designed to be immune to such common symptoms and his injuries should have healed hours ago. What's wrong with him?"

Dr. Bradbury started performing some tests of his own, gathering evidence for his conclusion. He took Alec's pulse from his throat since his wrists were heavily manacled, then checked his eyes for responsiveness, noting that they were slightly glazed over and a bit slow to react, and finally, he shoved an old-fashioned thermometer into Alec's ear in case the thermal scanner was defective.

After a few seconds, the machine beeped and he checked the reading; 107.5. He sighed. "The blood test will be able to tell us more, but I suspect 494's white cell count is very low. He has suffered more than a transgenic's body was designed to withstand and now he's paying the price. If you push him much further, he may not survive the night."

"No need to waste such a perfect specimen. We've got time. Get him on a heavy round of antibiotics and clean up his wounds. If he dies before I get my results, I will be holding you solely responsible so I suggest you get to work, doctor."

"Yes, ma'am."

She gave Alec's thigh a squeeze on her way to the door, making his leg jerk and sending bolts of fire through his body at the sudden movement, not to mention nausea roiling through his stomach.

"I'll see you soon, 494."

TBC

Sorry again for the major delay! I hope it was worth it and I'd appreciate any reviews you can send my way. More to come as soon as my schedule dies down a bit!


	19. Iced

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Dr. Bradbury watched Renfro leave, then turned to one of the soldiers guarding the door. "You. Go get me a bucket of ice. Quickly."

The soldier jerked his head in the affirmative then strode back out of the room. Alec stared up at the short man as if in fear for the doctor's sanity. "Wait, ice? Don't you think it's cold enough in here, pal?"

"On the contrary. It's actually quite warm, at least for those of us who aren't suffering from a dangerously high fever. We just have to get yours back under control. Of course, that is dependent upon proper care for your wound."

He pulled on latex gloves and dipped them into a sterilizing solution before unwrapping and laying out his tools on a side table, which he then proceeded to roll within inches of Alec's chair.

Pressing on a lever at the base of the chair, Alec went from a slightly reclined position to flat on his back and he immediately tensed. In his mind, there wasn't a more compromising position than this. He felt vulnerable and completely at the doctor's mercy; two things he never wanted to feel again.

"I'd like to apologize ahead of time," the small man stated, actual sympathy in his eyes as he stared down at his patient. "This is not going to be pleasant."

Alec's blood ran cold.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

"Almost there, Josh. Then we can get top-side again." Logan checked his watch. They had been in the underground tunnels for over two hours. It felt like days. He could only think of Max with every step he took, hoping each one would bring them closer together.

The thought of what they could be doing to her in that Manticore facility made his stomach twist and churn. If they wanted to force Alec to have a vision, it would have to be at Max's expense. There was no other trigger. At least, none that they knew of.

He'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't care about what happened to Alec as well. Though the guy could be childish and frustrating at the best of times, he had a good heart. Logan would even go as far as saying they had become friends. And Max would be devastated if she lost another one of her siblings.

The situation was beyond bleak, but as long as Logan and Josh stayed off of White's radar, there was still a chance. He had a feeling that getting _into_ Manticore was going to be all too easy. It was getting everyone _out_ that was going to be the challenge, and getting them all out _safely_ was a virtual impossibility.

They had to plan this one carefully. The problem was, they didn't have the time.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Dr. Bradbury began by plucking out all of the broken stitches in Alec's skin. Normally, stitches didn't bother Alec. It was par for the course if you grew up as a trained assassin. But with the infection, his entire arm was sensitive to the slightest touch and the doc may as well have been stabbing him with a blunt knife over and over again in the shoulder.

Being a transgenic, he had never experienced an infection before. He had more than his fair share of injuries over the years ranging from broken bones to gunshot wounds, but they all healed in a matter of days and he had multiple methods of blocking out the pain in the meantime.

But even transgenics have their limits, and Alec had clearly found his. He was shaking again and his entire body was covered in sweat from the struggle of keeping his cries of pain locked inside.

"No need to hold back, 494," White sneered, enjoying the show from across the room. "Feel free to scream."

Max tried to elbow the man behind her but didn't have enough space to do any real damage. He shoved her even harder into the bars and she grunted at the pressure, snarling at him in a way that would've made Joshua proud.

"Kitty likes to scratch, huh?" Ames gloated.

"Kitty's gonna bite your damn head off next chance she gets."

"I'd like to see you try."

"Better stick around then."

The sound of a code being punched into the door's keypad quickly brought Max's verbal sparring match to an end. She listened intently, committing the sequence to memory. Her trick from Crash could very well save their lives if given half a chance.

The designated soldier returned with his bucket of ice and handed it over to the doctor who began filling small plastic bags with it.

Bradbury eased one under Alec's taut neck, one beneath each of Alec's knees, tucked one against each armpit, and finally- after removing Alec's belt and unfastening the button of his pants- he packed two down the front of Alec's jeans which elicited a few choice swears from the transgenic. Needless to say, Alec was not pleased.

It burned. Holy _hell_ did it burn. There was no cloth barrier between the ice and his skin. It felt like he had just jumped off the Titanic and sank into the frozen depths of the ocean below.

The shock to his system nearly caused Alec to lose consciousness but he clung to it with everything he had, terrified of what might happen if he passed out. The ice cubes started melting as soon as they touched his over-heated skin as though they had been dropped into an oven and it didn't take long before the bags were filled with only ice-cold water.

Alec's teeth were chattering and he clenched his jaw, trying to make his discomfort a little less obvious. But when Bradbury began unwinding a long strip of gauze, Alec forced himself to look away, not wanting to see what he knew was coming next.

The sharp sting of a needle near his injury caught him by surprise. He looked back up at the man, confusion and distrust in his eyes, as the throbbing pain faded a little, taking the edge off and allowing Alec to breathe naturally for a moment without wincing.

But Alec wasn't a fool. There was always a catch when something seemed too good to be true. The man simply shrugged in response to his raised eyebrow.

"Madame Renfro only told me to keep you conscious. She didn't say anything about not giving you pain killers. There was an antibiotic mixed in there as well which should help to clean out the infection. I still have to pack the wound though, so you might want to look away again."

Alec heeded the man's warning, staring at the opposite wall and holding his breath as the doc strategically sliced his way through the top layer of semi-healed skin and began irrigating the bullet hole.

While Alec had never experienced an infected wound personally, he had learned how to treat one back in field med. If the outer layer of skin healed first, it would trap the infection inside the wound and fester.

The only way to prevent that was to pack the injury with sterile dressing that would absorb the build up of fluids and allow the injury to heal one layer at a time from the inside out. The downside was changing the bandages. Good times.

The young transgenic was able to block out most of the cleansing process but was sucker-punched back to Earth when Bradbury began stuffing the gauze into the bullet hole. Local anesthetic or not, the pain was agonizing and tears started streaming down Alec's cheeks, regardless of how hard he squeezed them shut to prevent it.

When he felt like he was on the verge of passing out again, the doctor's fingers finally retracted and carefully taped a clean patch of gauze over the hole before laying a plastic bag of ice on his shoulder to help keep the swelling down and numb the pain.

Alec was so exhausted at this point that he didn't even have the energy to protest as Bradbury began changing out the bags of water for fresh bags of ice. He allowed his eyes to drift closed as the man bustled around him. The doctor's flurry of movement was starting to make Alec feel nauseous again anyway.

He was nearly asleep when a cool but slightly rough fabric brushed against his cheek, startling him into opening his eyes again. Bradbury was washing the tear tracks from his sweaty face with a cold cloth.

The doctor then moved down to pat gently at Alec's throat, carefully bathed his chest and stomach, and lastly- after rinsing the cloth once more in cold water- he draped it across Alec's forehead to aid in bringing down his fever.

Alec felt a thermometer enter his ear but didn't have the energy to roll his eyes when it beeped obnoxiously seconds later. He hated all medical instruments with a passion, but old thermometers were certainly the most annoying.

"106 degrees and holding. Not great, but I'll take it," Bradbury reported as he jotted the statistic down in his file.

"That mean he's gonna live then?" White practically drawled, sounding as if he couldn't care less either way.

"Pending any further complications, yes. He will live."

"Excellent. Time to put phase two into effect then." White pulled Max's arms behind her back and cuffed them together, pulling her away from the bars and shoving her towards the door. The other soldiers immediately moved in to help escort her in the right direction.

"Sir, he's not ready for the next phase yet!" Bradbury protested but Ames clearly wasn't listening. He shoved Max again who had stopped long enough to catch a final glimpse of Alec before she was forced out of the room.

"Max?" Alec called after her, craning his neck to track her movements. "Max! Leave her alone, you son of a bitch!" He pulled furiously against his bindings but they didn't budge.

Bradbury put a hand on his chest and the other on his bad arm to try and minimize Alec's struggles. After all, if something happened to Renfro's favorite toy, it would be the doc's head on a platter. "Agent White, please…"

"I don't want 452 here feeling left out while 494 gets all the attention. We'll be in the interrogation room if you need us. Page me if you get any results on this end."

"Wait!" Alec shouted desperately.

White turned back to him. "For what, exactly?"

"You're trying to trigger the visions, right? You don't have to hurt her. I can figure it out. I just need some time."

"You might not realize this, but patience is a virtue I don't have time for."

"Please." The word itself made Alec's stomach clench.

White stared back at him for a moment, then sighed. "Fine. You get one chance, 494. Tell me what I'm planning to do and I'll give your girlfriend here a free pass."

"Okay, okay! I just…" Alec concentrated as hard as he could on the areas of his brain that hurt the most when he had a vision. Nothing happened. He switched focus to Max's expressionless face. Nothing again.

Naturally, when you don't want something to happen, you can't stop it. But when you _want_ it to happen, it never will. He banged his head against the headrest in frustration.

"Performance anxiety?" White sneered. "It happens. Better luck next time."

"It's alright, Alec," Max called over her shoulder as the soldiers dragged her out of the room. "It's not your fault!"

Alec turned his attention to the doctor. "Do something!"

"I'm open to suggestions."

"This is supposed to be _your_ area of expertise, isn't it? There's gotta be a drug or a catalyst of some kind you can give me that will force the connection to open. Do whatever you gotta do. Just make the damn thing work!"

"I wish I could, but physically there is nothing wrong. My best guess is that you've overtaxed your mind and it needs time to recover before it'll be back to fully functioning again."

"You're joking, right? Please tell me you're joking. My brain has been firing out visions constantly over the past few days and now that I need to have one, you're saying it's too tired to respond?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Come on, doc! There has to be another way! An engine overheats, you add a little water."

"We don't understand the cause of the visions well enough yet to start messing around with your brain's chemistry. Adding 'a little water' as you say could kill you just as easily as cure you."

"One vision. That's all I need."

Bradbury didn't see a killing machine before him. He saw a lost and scared kid who was pleading for help. The doctor in him refused to let him turn his back on a patient in need.

"Look, I was working on a theory before they hauled you in here but it's still a theory. I can't guarantee anything. I need more time to study you and how the drugs could affect your system."

"Consider this your first trial run. Hit me up and get White on the phone before he gets trigger happy."

Against his better judgment, Bradbury pulled the bottle of solution from the storage cabinet and began filling a syringe. "I want you to tell me if you start feeling any pain, understood?"

Alec nodded, his throat drying up as his eyes fell on the exceedingly large needle. Where the hell was that thing going exactly?

"This… isn't going to be fun," Bradbury warned as he squeezed the air bubbles out of the sharp instrument.

"Story of my life," Alec tried to joke but the humor behind the words fell flat.

"Try to relax." The doctor gripped Alec's chin and turned his head as far right as it would go, giving him access to the base of the transgenic's neck. "The fluid has to be introduced directly into the brain stem. Look down, please."

The hairs on Alec's neck rose as fear assaulted him, but he did as he was told and tilted his head down, creating more space between the vertebrae in his neck. Without warning, he felt the piercing pain of the needle as it broke through his skin and wormed its way up towards the base of his skull.

To say it was agony would be putting it lightly. Alec's nerve endings were firing off at random, trying to alert him that something was very wrong. It forced his body to tense up which made the pain even worse. And he thought the mini bomb Ames had injected him with a while back hurt.

"Relax, son," Bradbury ordered a second time, knowing he could cause excessive damage if he tried to force the needle through clenched muscles. "I know it hurts, but you need to relax. I'm almost there."

"Well hurry up!" Alec barked back and searched his mind for any distraction he could grab hold of. Naturally, the first thing that hit him was Max. He was doing this for Max. She so owed him big time now…

As soon as the doc felt the tension dissipate enough to continue, he inserted the needle the rest of the way and pressed down on the plunger. It was a strange sensation for Alec to say the least.

He felt as though a cold shower were raining down on the inside of his skull. On the plus side, it did help ease the pain a bit. Nevertheless, he was extremely grateful when Bradbury pulled the needle back out.

"How do you feel?" the doc asked, only a hint of trepidation in his tone. Alec had to give him kudos for that.

"I don't feel any different. Did it work?"

Bradbury shined a penlight into Alec's eyes. "I… I can't be certain. It should have caused an instant reaction."

Alec didn't even bother trying to hide his disappointment. "Great. Thanks for nothin', doc."

Then the seizure hit.

TBC

Please review! Plenty more to come.


	20. Touch And Go

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Alec convulsed violently in his chair. Had it not been for the restraints holding him in place, he would have fallen to the floor. Images, sounds, and feelings that weren't his own began to fire rapidly through his mind, too quickly for him to make any sense out of them.

He saw Max. He saw White. He saw blood, and lots of it. That was more than he wanted to see, but he couldn't shut it off or look away. This vision was lasting much longer than the others had and it didn't feel like there was any end in sight.

The muscles in his back contracted painfully in spasms, leaving him no choice but to flap about like a fish out of water. His teeth were clenched too tightly for him to beg the doctor for help or to even scream.

He saw knives. He saw electrodes. He saw guns. He saw medical tools that have haunted his dreams since childhood. He could hear Max screaming, and crying, and swearing. He could hear White taunting and laughing.

He could feel Max's anger and fear, feel her heart pounding inside her ribs… It was too much, too fast. Alec couldn't take anymore. He was either going to pass out or go insane. Then there was a bright flash of light that seared into his eyes and he was plunged into oppressive darkness.

Everything came to an abrupt halt and his heart stuttered in his chest as if trying to find traction again. Panting, he collapsed back into the chair, his body still occasionally assaulted by lingering tremors.

His eyes burned as though they were on fire, much like every muscle Alec had. He allowed his eyelids to drop closed, and then let the pain drift away. His strength was failing him, and he was too far gone to care. His mind was shutting down, followed closely by his tortured body.

Somewhere in the distance, he heard the frantic beeping of a heart monitor shift into one long, ear-piercing tone; the sound of a flat line. Then there was nothing. His fight was over.

DA-DA-DA

Max struggled against her guards as they dragged her down the hallway and away from Alec. She had held her tongue before in fear of what they might do to her fellow transgenic as a repercussion to her lack of cooperation, but now the gloves were off and she was beyond pissed.

"Get your greasy hands off of me!"

She strained her ears and was able to hear Alec pleading with the doctor to do something. _Anything_. He wanted to force another vision to protect her. The urge to rip White's men apart so she could get back to Alec's side and comfort him caught her by surprise.

Alec wasn't a helpless child or a kicked puppy. He was a trained soldier, and one that she could barely stand being around. Wasn't he? Since when had that changed?

She swallowed hard around the lump in her throat when she realized that nothing _had_ changed. She had always cared about Ben's pain-in-the-ass twin. She just refused to admit it, even to herself.

The evidence was clear though. Every time Alec got himself into a mess, she was the first to try and get him out of it. He relied on her to have his back, and she wasn't about to let him down now.

Whether she felt protective over him because of what she did to Ben or because 494 was her "smart alec," she didn't know. Maybe this was some pathetic attempt at redemption. Or maybe it was because she could see the goodness of his heart underneath his devil-may-care exterior.

The reasoning didn't matter though. Alec needed her, and she'd be damned if she let a handful of White's soldiers stand in her way.

With a strength she didn't even know she possessed, she broke free of the two men gripping her arms and unleashed a darkness worthy of a wild feline on the soldiers surrounding her. There was one man leading the way, one on each side of her, and two bringing up the rear.

She punched, kicked, broke bones, and even broke a few necks by the time she was done. Using her sleeve, she wiped at the blood trickling from her busted lip from one of the soldiers' lucky right hooks and stepped over his fallen body.

He wouldn't be getting up again.

Max's heated gaze searched the hallway for White but he was nowhere to be found. The coward probably bolted when she started getting the upper hand on her captors. She'd just have to deal with him later then.

Keeping her senses on high alert in case White had called for reinforcements, she crept back down the hall towards psy-ops, punched in the code she had memorized from earlier, then stood frozen at the sight that met her on the other side of the door.

At first, all she registered was the doctor frantically beating on Alec's bare chest. Then the monotone of the heart monitor sank in and she realized what she was seeing. Alec was dead, and Bradbury was trying to resuscitate him, apparently without success thus far.

What the hell had happened? She had been in this room less than three minutes ago and he had been fine. Well, maybe not _fine_, but he had been _alive_. And now she was too late. He was gone.

The overwhelming emptiness nearly brought her to her knees. The fingers she had clenched on the doorframe were the only reason she was still standing. After all they had been through… was this really where it ended?

"Get away from him," she growled in such a feral tone that the doctor froze between his first and second breaths for CPR.

Bradbury tore his eyes from the now bluish hue of Alec's lips to the fierce woman standing before him. He wasn't about to deny her wishes. He raised his hands from Alec's body and slowly stepped back.

"I'm sorry," he whispered out, feeling the need to express his sympathy for her situation, and his regret for the part he played in it. "I've done all I can."

"Shut up." She quietly walked to Alec's side, brushed his bangs away from his pale face, and laid her hand over his still heart. There was no rising or falling of his chest. The lack of movement made her feel ill. "Alec…"

She undid the binds holding him captive and pulled his limp torso into her arms, cradling his head as she had done in their cell no more than an hour ago. She rocked him gently, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Alec, don't you do this. Don't you give up on me." Was the last thing he ever saw going to be some stranger torturing him in the room he hated most? Was his last breath going to be spent in this cold, impersonal facility with no one he cared about there to hold his hand?

No. No way in Hell.

She reached down into the depths of her sorrow until she felt it. Felt _him. _The warmth she associated with Alec's presence was barely there now, but she knew instinctively that that little ball of heat inside her stomach was their connection.

She didn't know what she was doing or how, but she focused all her energy on that warm glow and tried to ignite it again like blowing on the last embers of a fire. She closed her eyes and concentrated on pushing that flicker of life back towards her fallen comrade.

The warmth began to burn inside of her. It was overwhelming and a feeling nearly impossible to describe. It was maternal. It was possessive. It was anxiety. It was affection.

It was love.

With Alec cradled in her left arm, she used her right one to take hold of his hand. Max touched their foreheads together and felt as though she had just completed a closed circuit. A ring of energy passed down her arm and into his, then through his body and back into her again.

It was a constant pulse that felt so right it hurt; like the first breath of fresh air after being submerged under water for too long. A sob escaped from Max's throat as she strengthened the pulse and forced it to move faster until it became a steady beep, beep, beep… Like a heartbeat.

The machines around them sprang back to life, creating a cacophony of beeps and pings, all at different pitches and intervals. They were erratic, but they were present. Max would take that over the white noise of a flat line any day.

She concentrated harder. If she couldn't get him stable, she could just as easily lose him again. A fierce pain shot up the back of her head and she gasped, her vision whiting out for a split second, just before the machines in the room popped, hissed, then died out completely, smoke rising from their burned out circuit boards.

The room was filled with a tense silence again, Max and Bradbury waiting and watching Alec with bated breath for any signs of life. Then Alec's hand twitched beneath Max's. Unable to believe it, she moved her hand up to Alec's chest and nearly shouted in joy as his heart thudded softly against her palm.

He shuddered, then began to cough. It was the best sound Max had heard in a long time. Feeling incredibly weak all of a sudden, Max slumped forward against the chair in relief and hugged Alec to her chest.

His beautiful green eyes cracked open in pain and confusion as he gasped in as much air as his abused lungs would allow. His focus darted around the room as if trying to orient himself again, but not once did they land on Max.

"Alec? Just breathe, okay? I've got you."

Alec jolted as if he had just realized that someone was right next to him and that the restraints on his body weren't straps but supportive arms. "M-Max?" His eyes moved towards her, but they looked straight through her instead of connecting. Max felt cold again as she realized something was still horribly wrong.

"Max, wh-what…?" Alec gasped out, his hand latching onto her right arm for stability.

"I tried to warn you," came the doctor's voice from a few feet away. He sounded tense and practically on the verge of tears.

"Warn him about what?" Max demanded. "Alec, what's wrong?"

"I… I can't see. Why can't I see, Max?"

She didn't need the connection to sense that he was panicking. She turned furiously to the man who was watching them somberly.

"What the hell did you do to him?!" she shouted at Bradbury.

"I initiated phase two," he responded softly, almost robotically.

Max eyed the man suspiciously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The doctor dropped his gaze to the ground. "It means you just gave them exactly what they wanted."

A slow clap began near the door and Max whirled to see White standing there gleefully, Renfro watching contentedly just over his shoulder.

"Well done, 452," White sneered. "Seriously. We couldn't have done it without you."

Max's world was spinning on its axis. "What are you talking about? Done what?"

"We had the ability to put 494's connection into full swing but, as you just witnessed, doing so made his body to shut down and ultimately killed him. We needed to find a way to balance out the power the two of you share in order for the process to succeed."

Max gaped at the man in horror. She had played right into his hands. Manticore didn't understand how the connection actually worked or how to force it to occur, but she did all the heavy lifting for them in order to save Alec.

The more she thought about it, the more the pieces fell into place and she realized how blind she had been. White had taken her out of that cage on purpose. He took Max out of Alec's sight knowing full well that he would be desperate enough to agree to anything if it kept her safe. And then Ames kept her security detail to a minimum, planning on her fighting for freedom and getting back to Alec's side.

The whole thing had been a trap. And now Manticore had all the information it needed.

"What if I hadn't been able to bring him back?" she asked the white haired woman, unable to believe she had left Alec's life up to chance.

"Then he would be dead," Renfro responded lightly, chuckling at Max's wide-eyed expression. "It wasn't an ideal plan, obviously, but odds were in our favor that you would succeed. The results far outweighed the risks."

Max's head was spinning. Manticore had thrown all their eggs into one basket and only now did she realize that what she had thought was a blessing in disguise had really been a curse. Judging by the smug smiles on White and Renfro's faces, she should have let Alec die when he had the chance.

"Clear the room," Renfro ordered, stepping around White and walking steadily towards her captives. "494 and I have some catching up to do."

TBC

Special shout out to SupernaturalCheetahFast for your support and enthusiasm! You rock! Also, hugs to my lovelies scifigeek22 and ValheRain Toledo for their dedication to my stories and their loyal friendships.

Much love to all my reviewers, and if it weren't for you, I would've quit writing years ago! Thanks for the inspiration, and please keep those reviews coming!


	21. Split Vision

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"Clear the room," Renfro ordered, stepping around White and walking steadily towards her captives. "494 and I have some catching up to do."

Alec had never felt weaker in his life. His body didn't want to move and he couldn't blame it. His muscles were starved for oxygen and barely responsive, his lungs felt asthmatic though he had never suffered from the condition, and his inability to see the vile woman approaching caused his damaged heart to stutter a few times in panic.

He needed more time to recover. He wasn't ready to fight for his life again yet. But the last vision he had before losing his sight kept replaying in his head and he converted his fear into anger. White had every intention of torturing Max and Alec was not about to let that happen, even if it cost him his life to prevent it.

The echo of Renfro's heels in the relatively empty room made it hard for him to pinpoint exactly how close the crippled woman was getting. He wasn't sure he wanted to know, but he _needed_ to know if he was going to counter-attack.

Alec sensed Max shifting her body in front of his, making herself a human shield and blocking him from Renfro's view. "Think again, sister. You're not gettin' anywhere near him."

Alec reached out and latched onto Max's arm, ignoring the screaming protest his body made as he pulled himself into an upright position on the reclined chair. He knew there was only one choice, but it wasn't his alone to make. "Max?"

She glanced over her shoulder at him, waiting for him to ask a question. But then she realized he wasn't looking for an answer. He was asking for permission. Her mind fumbled for a moment in confusion, and then it clicked.

Alec's eyes were damaged and he couldn't see, but as they had established back in Logan's apartment, he _was_ able to see through _her_. He wanted her to say it was okay for him to piggyback off of her sight.

Turning back to Renfro, Max felt ill as she read the hungry look in the woman's eyes. She found herself considering that leaving Alec blind might actually be doing him a favor. That, and the connection always came with consequences.

"Alec, you're not strong enough yet. It could kill you. Again."

"Max, please." His voice faltered on the last word, his emotions barely being held in check beneath the surface. She could tell he'd rather die than face the unknown without a fighting chance.

Alec needed her, and what right did she have to deny him after everything he had done for her? She braced herself for the mental invasion.

"Alright. Do it."

It took him two tries before he was able to succeed. The first time, he was being too tentative though Max didn't know if it was because he was afraid of the inevitable pain or if he was worried about what it would do to her.

She felt the tingling in her stomach that announced his presence and mentally reached out to him in return, hoping to ease him into the connection instead of making him do all the work.

He gasped softly behind her and she knew the connection had succeeded. Even better, he was still conscious. Apparently, they were getting better at this.

As the room began to focus around him, Alec found himself turning his head and trying to assess their situation but the image in front of his eyes never wavered. It was like staring through a View Master, and he realized he was staring at himself.

"Uh… Maxie? I know I'm hot but more them and less me, if you don't mind." Their shared view immediately shifted to Renfro and unless he was much mistaken, he could feel the heat burning in Max's cheeks.

"Right. Sorry."

Realizing he had to surrender control of his vision in order for this to really work, Alec closed his eyes and trusted Max to show him what he needed to see. It was like watching a 3D interactive movie. A feral grin crossed his face when Max locked eyes with Renfro and he saw her staring back at him. _Game on, bitch._

Alec stumbled his way off of the chair and Max had to throw out an embracing arm to help him find his footing, but when he did, he stood tall and boldly stepped forward until he was side-by-side with Max. He was done cowering behind her.

Renfro was still sauntering her way towards them when she started chuckling. "I'm impressed, 494. Didn't think you had it in you. But tell me, what exactly is your plan here?"

"To send you back to Hell where you belong," he growled through clenched teeth. Max could practically feel his hackles rising like their primitive jungle cat ancestor. He was poised to pounce, and she almost pitied his prey. Almost.

White seemed to recognize the true threat faster than Renfro did and he moved forward, itching for some hand-to-hand combat. With an evil smirk, he began circling the two transgenics, making it impossible for Max to keep both him and Renfro within sight.

Normally, this wouldn't be an issue and they would just fight back-to-back but as they were sharing her vision, they were now fighting a two front battle, half blind.

Max swung around to watch White and Alec swayed on his feet, caught off guard by the sudden motion when he himself hadn't moved a muscle. It felt like the room was spinning around him and one step could land him on the ceiling. Worse yet, he lost sight of Renfro and her echoing footsteps told him she was on the move again.

"Max…" he warned, hoping she would understand the anxiety he was trying to convey.

Between the two enemies, White was the bigger threat though. "Hang in there," she whispered over her shoulder as she prepared to battle the Familiar. Max stepped away from Alec just enough to give herself some fighting room, and then White engaged her.

Every time the man threw a punch at Max, Alec found himself dodging it. He felt ridiculous, but it was instinctive to avoid the hit and as far as he could tell, it was aimed at his own head and not hers.

He was starting to think the connection was more of a hindrance than a help, but at the same time, he was grateful to escape the darkness, even if only for a short time. While he waited for Max to turn back around, Alec switched focus to his hearing and raised his fists, preparing to fight and protect himself at the same time.

"Bring in the reinforcements." Renfro's voice caught Alec by surprise as it was only a foot or two away on his right. He spun to face her, his heart hammering as the sound of a door sliding open and heavy booted footsteps joined the fray.

"Stand down!" White ordered as they closed in around him and Max. "She's mine."

"As if," Max growled back. At least she sounded okay still.

A strong hand landed on Alec's shoulder. He could tell by the weight and the size that it was a male and not Renfro. Half a second later, and whoever it was had four broken bones and a dislocated thumb. Not Familiars then. Just soldiers. He could work with that.

Alec felt the shifting of air just before a fist collided with his jawbone. His reflexes were fast enough that he was able to roll with it but too slow to avoid it completely. _That's gonna leave a bruise…_

He crouched down a little lower and raised his hands a little higher, throwing out occasional jabs when the sound of rustling fabric or squeaky tiles gave away a soldier's position. Fighting blind wasn't impossible. He could do this. He just needed to concentrate.

He deflected another punch to the face and an attempted kick to his ribs, but the increased commotion prevented him from hearing the leg sweeping underneath his own. Alec hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from his lungs. Nevertheless, he wasn't going to make it that easy for them.

He kipped back onto his feet, thankful as ever for his cat-like sense of balance. Max kicked White's knee out from under him and he went down long enough for her to throw a quick glance over her shoulder at Alec. He wished she hadn't bothered.

Alec's stomach clenched when he saw that he was surrounded by soldiers. Three of them were directly in front of him and unarmed, trying to subdue him with non-lethal force. The rest were holding down the perimeter and they each had a gun in one hand and a taser in the other.

They were screwed. Any resistance Alec had left was futile. Struggling now was only going to weaken him, and it was merely putting off the inevitable. Hell if he gave a damn though. He'd rather go down swinging than cower like a puppy while they chipped away at his humanity.

Max also knew they had no chance of getting out of here alive, not with just the two of them. But she was buying time, trying to keep Alec out of Renfro's clutches long enough for help to arrive. White was getting back to his feet when he rushed her, tackling her to the ground with a shoulder to her stomach.

A yelp from Max helped to feed Alec's fury and he used it. No more Mr. Nice Guy. He was done playing around. Doing some quick calculations in his head, he was able to map out the soldiers' locations according to his own standpoint from the image Max had given him. _Give it your best shot, fellas._

"Enough of this. Bring him down," Renfro ordered, sounding a bit further away than when she last spoke. Apparently the amount of fight he had left in him took her by surprise and she retreated to the nearest wall. "But I want him alive!" she clarified.

The three soldiers rushed him as one. Alec fought like a man possessed. It was a beautiful sight to behold and Renfro couldn't hide her awe. He shut out his pain, focused his hearing, and delivered a beat down that any MMA fighter would be jealous of.

By the time he was done, he was panting and bloody but the soldiers lay in a heap at his feet. He held his wounded arm against his side as crimson ran down his bicep from the hole in his shoulder again.

His head was throbbing and his connection with Max was faltering. It was as if he were in a pitch-black room with a strobe light that only flashed every other second. "Disorienting" was an understatement.

He staggered to his left a few paces, dropping heavily to his knees. Okay, so maybe he overtaxed himself a bit on that one. Seizing the opportunity, Renfro kicked off her high-heeled shoes, grabbed a taser from the nearest soldier standing guard, and padded her way behind the fallen transgenic without making a sound.

She wrapped a strong forearm around his throat and locked him in a chokehold, simultaneously jabbing the taser into his chest and pushing the button. Alec's hands immediately came up to his neck to pull her away, but as soon as the current coursed through his body, his muscles locked up and his systems began shutting down one by one.

He couldn't call out. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't struggle. And then he couldn't see, not even through Max's eyes. Renfro leaned down until her twisted lips were practically touching his ear. "If you want something done right…"

He passed out before she could finish.

Max felt the connection between them short circuit and whirled to see what had happened. Renfro was supporting Alec's limp body against her own, easing him to the floor like she was putting a child to bed.

"Alec!"

Max's momentary lapse of concentration cost her and a harsh blow to the back of the head from White sent her into unconsciousness before she even hit the floor.

Renfro stared down at her fallen charge, kneeling behind Alec with his perfectly sculpted body sprawled between her legs. His head was still in the crook of her elbow, though now she was using her arm to brace him instead of choke him.

She ran the back of her hand gently down the side of his face, feeling the short stubble of neglect scrape abrasively against her skin. Her thumb caressed his soft lips, the two different textures awakening emotions inside of her that she hadn't felt in years.

She pressed two manicured fingers against his neck, just beneath his beautifully cut jawbone, to make sure she hadn't been overly aggressive with him. His pulse was a bit erratic, but that was to be expected after an excessive amount of voltage has surged through your torso.

Gliding a bit lower, she laid her hand over his heart, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest. Even after everything he had been through, he was still alive. She was now starting to realize that no matter what she threw at him, this boy was not going to break. At least, not from pain.

Manticore had trained him to resist interrogation a bit too well, and Max had taught him compassion; a lethal combination that made him both brave and loyal. What a waste. Those qualities were usually beaten out of their soldiers at a young age. Independent thinking tended to get them killed or botched the mission.

Unless… unless she could force him to feel loyal to her and her alone. Alec had resisted reindoctrination multiple times in the past, but Lydecker had been in charge then and he always _was_ too easy on his kids.

This was Renfro's show now though, and 494 would be her personal lapdog soon enough. And by the time she was finished with him, he wouldn't even remember who 452 was, aside from a traitor to the cause.

Renfro leaned forward and kissed Alec's temple tenderly. He _would _break. And she knew just where to apply the right amount of pressure to make it happen.

TBC

Sorry for the long delay once again, everyone! I promise I have a valid excuse this time though lol Hope it was worth it, and more to come when I've got the time. I love you all for your continued support and inspiration! I couldn't thank you enough.


	22. Predator Versus Prey

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

It had been twenty-three minutes since the unconscious X-5 494 was dragged to the Copulation Center and strung up by his wrists in an empty holding cell. His bare feet hovered about an inch off the ground but if he stretched, he'd probably be able to brush the cold cement.

Renfro sat in a chair close to the door, perfectly content to study Alec in silence while waiting for him to wake. Perhaps she shouldn't have had the taser set on the highest setting… His superior stamina wasn't currently up to its usual standards. Regardless, she had him right where she wanted him, and all the time in the world.

Alec, wearing nothing but his tattered jeans, hung motionless in the center of the cell with his chin resting on his chest. His injured arm was still streaked with blood, which had begun to drip back towards his shoulder and down his side thanks to the raised positioning of his wrists.

That, plus the more minor cuts and bruises he had gathered from all the recent fights, left him looking like a prisoner of war waiting for interrogation. The thought alone sent a chill of excitement up Renfro's spine and she was done with waiting.

She picked up the high-powered hose (normally used to keep the males in control during the females' heat cycles) and sent a blast of icy water all over Alec. He immediately snapped back to consciousness, lurching backwards to try and escape the shock to his body.

Renfro sprayed as much of the blood off of him as she could before shutting the water down and leaving Alec spluttering and swinging like a pendulum by his already chaffed wrists.

"There. Much better," Renfro taunted with her twisted smirk firmly in place. "You look almost presentable now."

She dropped the hose to the ground and he gauged her distance by the sound of her shoes once again as she approached him. This room didn't echo nearly as much as the last one had, so he could tell he was no longer in psy-ops.

His exposed chest heaved painfully as he choked up some of the water and spit it angrily towards her clicking shoes. He blinked rapidly, trying to clear the water from his damaged eyes. When he opened them again, he could've sworn he saw the blurry shape of Renfro's figure about five feet in front of him and closing. But that wasn't possible, was it?

He blinked once more and found himself back in the darkness. It must have been a trick of the light; a bit of shadow play against his eyelids or something. Alec felt the hope inside of him die just as quickly as it had come, leaving him cold and empty.

He heard Renfro circle around him and it made his skin crawl uncomfortably. She chuckled softly when she saw him shudder, knowing it had nothing to do with the cold water dripping off his body or the low temperature of the room.

"You know where you are now, don't you," the old woman surmised, standing directly behind him. She knew she was right when the muscles in Alec's back tensed and he shifted against his binds, testing their strength.

It was the smells of the room that gave his new location away; sweat, musk, synthetic pheromones, and a handful of other scents he recognized but didn't want to acknowledge. They made his heart plummet into his stomach.

If there was ever a room he hated more than psy-ops, this was it. The memories still haunted him. He was an alpha male and a soldier, designed to be the top of the food chain and practically invincible. Having that control taken away and being reduced to a victim nearly broke his spirit for good.

When he was no longer cleared for solo missions due to his blatant disobedience, he was sent to this lab where he could still be of use to Manticore as a stud. After Max had blown up the DNA database, breeding partners were assigned and rooms like this one were where the more _reluctant_ participants were taken.

The first time Alec was asked to "perform" he flat out refused, Rachel's death still a fresh wound in his heart. But his assigned partner had no such qualms. They strung him up to the ceiling, dosed him with drugs to make him more cooperative, and then she took what she needed from him to complete her mission. Abstinence was no longer an option.

Between this room and psy-ops, Alec had been abused and violated in just about every way possible. It would've shattered a lesser man to pieces, but Alec was a survivor. He kept his head down and stayed out of trouble, reverting back to a true blue soldier.

_"You did what you had to, and you tried to forget. And when you couldn't forget, they had ways of making you not care."_

His own words came back to haunt him, repeating in his mind like a broken record. If it hadn't been for Max, Manticore would've still been using him to do their dirty work.

Speaking of…

"Where's M-Max?" Alec was shivering from the freezing cold shower and he was finding it hard to articulate words.

"She's not here," Renfro said, stating the obvious, then placed her hand at the small of Alec's taut back to still his minute swaying. Running her cold fingers along his skin, she slowly slid around his side, making her way towards the front of him again to gauge his reaction, her hand coming to rest against his sculpted abs. "White took her on a little road trip."

Reaching up with her other hand, she used a small towel to dab at the water dripping down his face but he jerked away from her touch.

"Wh-what for?" he demanded.

Undaunted by his limited attempts to avoid her help, Renfro stepped closer and tried again, this time swiping at his forehead and drenched hair so she could look into his beautifully blind eyes. He tried to glare at her but his gaze was a tad bit over her head.

"We're trying a new experiment," she explained. "I want to see how strong that connection of yours really is. If we send one of you out on a mission, will the other be able to keep us apprised of the situation? If so, electronic bugs and wires will no longer be necessary during infiltrations."

"And if n-not?"

"Then we've got some more work to do, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"C-can't wait," Alec grumbled sarcastically through clenched teeth as the towel made its way down his torso, soaking up water droplets as it went. His ribs stood out prominently as he strained against his bindings and Renfro couldn't help but to run her twisted fingers along them in the wake of the towel.

"Lydecker knew what he was doing when he chose your surrogates, didn't he? You really are quite perfect for breeding. The things we could do together…"

He grunted in disgust and annoyance. "You can't afford me, lady. Why don't you ask White if he's open for business?"

"I own you, 494. Mind, body, and soul. You _will_ fall back in line, and if that means I have to break every ounce of your free will first, then so be it."

"Yeah… Good luck with that." He swallowed hard when her hands slid down to the waistband of his jeans and only then did he realize they were still unfastened from the doctor's attempts at cooling his body down, though thankfully the makeshift ice packets had been dislodged during his last seizure.

"I don't need luck, handsome." Renfro began tugging the drenched clothing down and he tried to lash out at her but only ended up inadvertently assisting the woman when his jeans slid a bit further down his hips. "But I look forward to the challenge."

Alec locked his jaw to hold back the frustrated growl threatening to escape his throat. He hissed when he felt a sharp sting in his left hip, just above his low riding pants. "Ah! What the…?"

"Just a little something to set the mood," she whispered near his ear and Alec was sure he was going to be sick. It didn't take a genius to realize she hadn't given him another shot of antibiotics.

His blind eyes widened in panic as he connected the dots. "No…"

He was so screwed.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Logan took a deep breath of fresh air as soon as he and Joshua made it topside. Who knew pollution could smell so sweet? Down in the tunnels, the air was musty and earthy. The walls seemed to be closing in around them the further they went, eliciting uncomfortable pangs of claustrophobia.

The tunnels were longer than he had remembered them being. After all that walking, his legs were starting to feel like jelly, regardless of the exoskeleton he was wearing. Logan was half tempted to rest for a minute, but he knew they didn't have any time to spare.

They had already lost too much of it. For all he knew, Max and Alec could be dead back in his apartment, but he had his doubts. Something told him Renfro wouldn't let that happen. Thoughts of what she could be doing to them made him shudder.

Joshua whimpered, his thoughts clearly along the same line. Logan patted the dog boy on the shoulder in comfort as soon as he reached his side. "We'll find them, big guy. But first, we need to borrow a car and head back towards…"

"Cale!"

Logan looked around in surprise, his eyes falling on a non-descript van parked a few yards away. He stared for a moment in awe. _It can't be._

"'bout damn time you two made it here. If I didn't need your assistance, I would've gone after my kids myself over half an hour ago."

"Lydecker?! You got away? But how…?"

"Cliff notes version? White left a kid behind to take me out but it was clear the runt hadn't killed a man before. He hesitated before pulling the trigger and I timed it just right. Well, almost right."

He turned his head slightly and Logan could see a bloody gash on the side of Lyecker's head where the bullet had grazed him.

"The kid was in shock after that and it wasn't hard to get the upper hand."

"Did you kill him?" Logan asked softly, pretty sure he already knew the answer.

"I did what I had to." Lydecker stated it simply, but Logan could tell there was a hint of regret in his voice. "Once I gained the upper hand, he became an open book. I know where they took Max and Alec, and I know what they're after. We don't have much time. Get in."

Logan slid into the passenger seat and Joshua hopped into the back. The cyber hacker was surprised to find a computer waiting for him, tucked between the console and the side of his seat cushion.

"Who'd you steal this from?"

"Does it really matter? They're transporting Max to an offsite holding cell and I've got the license plate number of the vehicle. Can you track it?"

"Faster than you can drive." Logan flipped open the laptop and began booting it up. "What about Alec?"

"They left him behind for Renfro to play with. We'll need Max's help if we're going to infiltrate one of Manticore's top facilities. They will have that place on total lockdown now that they've got what they want, so he'll just have to tough it out and wait."

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Max sat in silence, glaring at the man sitting across from her. When she had first woken up to find herself on the move, she demanded answers from Ames but he refused to ruin the surprise. Thanks to the steel chains fastened around her body, she had no choice but to wait him out.

Instead, she turned her thoughts inward. She was worried about Alec and decided to try and reach out to him. Max closed her eyes and concentrated.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Alec could feel his heart racing in his chest and he was starting to sweat again. He was focusing all his energy on fighting the effects of the stimulating drugs but waves of heat were coursing through his body and the smell of Renfro's perfume suddenly became intoxicating. She stroked the side of his face lovingly.

"D-don't do this," he gasped, finding himself panting for air as though he had run a great distance. His entire body ached thanks to his refusal to participate. He remembered being in this very position less than two years ago, and he wasn't looking forward to going through it again.

"This doesn't have to be painful, you know," Renfro cooed, rubbing her thumb across his temple soothingly. "Just give in to it, 494. You may find you actually enjoy it."

"I have my doubts, lady."

He winced as he felt Max's presence pushing gently against the back of his mind. _Not now, Max, please! _He pushed back, refusing to let her in, but his concentration took a devastating hit because of it.

The heat surged through his body in full force, wrenching a cry of pain and discomfort from him as his body began to betray him. Renfro seized the opportunity and pulled Alec's head down for a deep kiss.

Alec was taken completely by surprise and didn't have the chance to clamp his mouth shut before the deranged woman used one hand to squeeze his jaw hard enough to keep it open and forced her tongue past his dry lips. It was like trying to swallow a leech and it immediately activated his gag reflex but Alec forced the impulse back down.

He jerked harshly against his binds but achieved nothing more than bloody wrists. A blinding white flash of agony erupted behind his eyes as Max slipped past his defenses and Alec was able to watch as Renfro finally pulled away, running her tongue along her now swollen lips in ecstasy.

He would've given anything to not see that predatory look on Renfro's face before being plunged back into darkness as Max quickly retreated.

TBC

Please review! More Alec/Renfro to come, and please feel free to message me with requests before I start to wrap this story up. Thanks for reading!


	23. Crossing the Lines

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"So how about it, 494? Are you ready to fall back in line like the good little soldier you used to be?" Renfro taunted, running a finger down his sternum and enjoying the feeling of his heart hammering beneath her touch as Alec panted, desperately grasping for control.

"In your… dreams," he grunted between labored breaths. The chills had finally subsided, but now he felt like he was burning up from the inside and sweat mingled with the water droplets still glistening all over his body.

Renfro just smirked. "As I said before, I've got time, handsome. Why don't you hang around and think it over a bit? I'll come back and check on you in say… half an hour? I have a feeling you'll be singing a different tune by then."

Alec clenched his jaw, refusing to beg for her to reconsider. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction. If the pain got bad enough, he'd just force himself to pass out. Of course, that was a last resort. After all, being unconscious would not only prevent him from escaping, but it would also leave him vulnerable to Renfro.

The twisted crone reached forward again, this time tugging Alec's jeans back up where they belonged, then patted his hip condescendingly. He wasn't foolish enough to think she was doing him a favor. She was showing her ownership, dressing him like a life-sized doll, and she knew the clothing would cause him discomfort in the near future.

Nevertheless, he couldn't help but feel grateful for the small token of modesty she was allowing him. Now if only she'd find him a shirt… _Dare to dream much?_

Renfro's hands lingered on his waist for a moment more, then, without another word, she turned and walked out the door. Dr. Bradbury was leaning against the far wall to her right, looking ashamed. Ignoring his guilt complex, she strode over to him and pinned him with an authoritative glare.

"Stay with 494. If he's not begging for relief in twenty minutes, I want you to give him a second dose."

Bradbury gaped at her. "But, Madame…!"

He had barely begun to protest when her hand shot up and cut him off. "I don't care about the possible side-effects. He'll survive them. Just do as I say, or you can take his place. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." He dropped his eyes to the floor in submission.

"Good. Keep me informed. I'll be in my office."

The doctor stayed where he was, debating his options as Renfro's clicking heels faded into the distance.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Max found herself trembling when she broke the connection with Alec, though she had no idea if it was due to the mental strain, Alec's tremors being passed on to her, or because she was so angry and disgusted at Renfro for taking advantage of the poor guy while he was helpless.

This particular connection had been much harder to make than the others, and thanks to hindsight, she understood why. Alec had been purposefully trying to keep her out, and now she really wished he had succeeded. As he had told her before, _"Curiosity killed the cat, Max."_

She had felt the cold of the room, the dampness and burning heat of Alec's skin, his disgust at Renfro's attempts at seducing him, and the sheer panic from lack of control that made his heart race painfully in his chest. Max instantly felt nauseous.

There was no denying what the old woman wanted from Alec anymore. And now Max was stuck in a transport vehicle, tied up and being driven further and further away from him. Alec had been right; things had gotten a lot worse for her brothers and sisters.

From what she had surmised about her fellow soldier in the few months she had known him, she was sure that Alec would revert to the old Manticore ways if he didn't see any other option, and he would give Renfro whatever she asked of him to save his own skin.

Max had to do something, before it was too late. But what? She glanced up at White again who was smirking at her as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. "Give it up, 452. Your boyfriend's found a new breeding partner. Cut your loses and move on."

Instead of instinctively denying White's assumption about their relationship, Max jerked against her chains furiously. To her dismay, they didn't budge. White laughed.

"Is that the best you've got? Gotta say, I'm disappointed. Guess he doesn't mean that much to you after all. But don't you worry. Renfro will keep him warm at night… and in the morning, and in the after..."

A gunshot rang out, followed by a loud pop resonating from the front driver's side tire and the van was immediately thrown into chaos, weaving left and right as the driver tried to get the vehicle back under control.

White was thrown sideways but just managed to stay off the floor by clinging desperately to his seat. "What the hell is happening?!" he demanded of the two men up front.

The man riding shotgun had just barely gotten out the words "under attack" when a second gunshot took out a back tire and sent the van into a deadly roll, flipping end over end three times before coming to rest in the middle of the street.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Alec jerked his head back up when he heard the door open and close again. Had it been half an hour already? A small spark of pride flared up in him at the fact that he hadn't started begging yet like Renfro had predicted. It had been a close one though.

"Couldn't stay away, huh?" he rasped out through an incredibly dry throat.

"I was asked to check up on you," came the response from a voice much deeper than the one he had been expecting.

"…Doc?"

"Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." The man sounded sheepish and uncomfortable, like this room was the last place he wanted to be right now. Alec could relate.

"Where's Renfro?"

"She'll be back in…" Bradbury consulted his watch, "about twenty-five minutes."

Five minutes. It had only been five minutes. Alec thought he was going to cry at the injustice of it all. Five minutes on this drug had felt like an eternity.

"Please…" he whispered out, his head falling back down to his chest in utter defeat. "Kill me if you want, just make it stop."

"Shh…" came the reply as the man moved forward and gently lifted Alec's head up by his chin. Gloved fingers prodded at the irritated looking gash at his hairline where the soldier had knocked him out the day he first arrived to save Max.

Alec winced but stayed silent, too exhausted to do anything but hang there like a puppet. His skin was burning, his head was throbbing, his shoulder was screaming at him, and he felt like he was on Viagra overload.

Thankfully, the doctor's hands on him were not affecting him like Renfro's had and Alec actually felt relieved because of it. Still, he never did like doctors, and not being able to see the man in front of him was making his skin itch uncomfortably.

Bradbury tilted Alec's head at different angles, trying to get the best light on his wounds for assessment. Then he held the transgenic's eyelids open long enough to check his pupil responses.

Alec tried to twist away at that- not wanting the man doing any more damage where his eyes were concerned- but Bradbury tightened his grip on Alec's jaw and stilled his struggles.

"Easy," he soothed. "I'm not going to hurt you. How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Is that supposed to be a joke?" Alec grumbled back.

"Excuse me?" The man actually had the gall to sound confused.

"I'm blind, remember? Can't see a damned thing, thanks to you and your little experiment."

"Still? Must be the head wound, or your low white blood cell count. I only did minimal damage to your retinas with the laser. It was meant to prevent your sight from triggering more visions, but only temporarily so we could break your seizure cycle. On any other day, X-5s would heal from that kind of scarring within three hours. But you…"

"You tellin' me this isn't permanent?" Alec tried to keep the hopefulness out of his voice.

"It's taking longer than it should for your vision to return, but I assure you, it will do just that. One hundred percent, as soon as your body has a chance to heal."

Alec found that it was suddenly a lot easier to breathe. Maybe he wasn't as defeated as he thought. If he got his sight back, he'd get his fight back. He just had to hang in there, no pun intended.

"In the meantime," Bradbury continued, "let's see what else we can do to get you healthy again. Deep breath, if you can manage it."

Alec felt the end of a stethoscope being pressed against his chest and knew his stats were going to be way off the charts. Ignoring the man's request, he demanded an answer of his own instead. "Why do you care?"

"Sorry?"

"What's it matter to you if I live or die? There's no shortage of lab rats around here, so what gives?"

Bradbury sighed, wrapping the stethoscope back around his neck before answering. "I signed on to this project to learn more about you and your kind. I'm a scientist, son, not a murderer. And I don't agree with the way they've been handling these tests."

He gently pulled at the front of Alec's jeans, taking a quick peek inside and wincing in sympathy at the boy's gasp of discomfort. Bradbury had assumed correctly that a second dose would kill him.

"Then help me," Alec gritted out through clenched teeth. "Let me down and give me a fighting chance. Please."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. Until your sight comes back, you'll be an easy target and I'd be signing your death warrant if I turned you loose now. Plus, there are cameras all over this place and Renfro will know it was me. Believe it or not, I have a wife and two children to worry about. I'm sorry, but I just can't take the risk."

Alec nodded glumly. "I get it. You do what you've gotta do, right? I've been there. That's how they get in your head. Don't let 'em win, Doc. Take your family and get as far away from here as you can, first chance you get. Believe me, there won't be a second one."

Another pang of fire coursed through Alec's body, making him yelp in surprise and pain. He jerked against the cuffs unintentionally, tearing the skin at his wrists even more as he swung back and forth from his agonized shoulders.

Bradbury instinctively reached up and caught Alec by the ribs, stilling him and giving him something else to focus on. "Easy, easy… Breathe through it. You're okay."

"Wh-what the hell was in that cocktail?" Alec panted as he fought for control again.

"Don't ask," Bradbury sighed, feeling the guilt hit him for a second time. "Try to focus on something else."

"Brain's a little foggy here, Doc," Alec grunted back. Even so, he cast out a net for anything that could help ground him and once again, found his mind wandering towards Max. He wondered where she was, and hoped like hell she had made it out of White's clutches long enough to save herself.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Smoke was starting to slowly billow out from the transport van's mangled engine. Broken glass littered the ground, and after the cacophony of the accident, the world had fallen silent and seemed to be holding its breath.

Lydecker slowly lowered his gun. Logan stared in horror out the windshield of the Colonel's car. From what he could tell, no one was moving inside the crushed vehicle.

"Max…" Breaking out of his stupor, he reached for the door handle but Lydecker's free hand gripped his upper arm tightly.

"Wait."

Logan turned on him, fury written all over his face. "Get your hand off of me!" He jerked free, threw open the door, and jumped out onto the blacktop. "You better pray she's still alive," he threatened before slamming the door and jogging towards the crash site.

"Cale!" Lydecker called after him, but was immediately cut off by a clawed hand around his throat, courtesy of Joshua. The transhuman gave him a warning growl, then clambered out the side door and caught up to Logan, ready to help.

After a moment's hesitation to massage his slightly crushed windpipe, Lydecker also followed, gun poised in case there was any trouble. Logan was pulling desperately at the back doors to the van but the frame around them was dented and he couldn't get them to budge.

Joshua moved him aside and with a monumental effort, pulled the doors right off their hinges. A quick glimpse inside revealed that everyone was either dead or unconscious, and Logan scrambled into the van in search of Max.

The vehicle had come to a rest on its left side, which was thankfully the one she had been tied to. There was blood on the side of her face from a small head wound, but she was still breathing. Logan tapped her cheek lightly. "Max? Max. Open your eyes. Come on."

Lydecker kept his gun trained on White who had not been wearing a seatbelt and had clearly been tossed around the cabin like a ping-pong ball. His arm was broken in at least one place, he was bleeding from several more minor wounds, and with the way he was wrapped around the bench seat Max was sitting on, he no doubt had one or more broken ribs as well.

For now, he didn't pose any threat. Going around to the front, Lydecker confirmed that the driver and passenger were both dead.

Logan turned to White and began searching the man's pockets for the keys to Max's chains. Ames began to stir and Logan summoned all the hatred and anger he possessed and sent it crashing into the man's chin via his clenched fist. White didn't move again.

When he finally found the keys, Logan quickly released Max and carefully pulled her into his arms. "Max, please wake up." She didn't so much as twitch.

TBC

I want to wish all you loyal readers a very happy holiday season just in case I don't get to post again before the new year! I promise I'll try my best to though. Please review!


	24. I'm Coming For You

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

When the pain had finally passed through Alec's system, it took his adrenaline with it and he slumped weakly against his bonds, no longer caring if the metal cut through his wrists or not.

Bradbury patted him gently on the chest in a fatherly gesture. "You did good, kiddo. Just try to relax for a bit."

"Please tell me… there's a shelf-life… for this… d-drug," Alec breathed out, his voice hitching on occasion as aftershocks of pain coursed through his muscles.

"Forty-eight hours. But trust me, you're not going to last that long. There's only one way to get it out of your system and survive," the doctor reluctantly admitted. "And I think you already know what it is."

Alec shook his head wearily. "'s not gonna happen."

"Son, listen to me. The pain is going to continue to build the longer you hold off, and there are only two possible outcomes. Either it's going to kill you, or…" He hesitated.

"Or what?" Alec demanded.

"Or your need is going to outweigh your reason and… and you'll take your frustrations out on some unsuspecting person."

Alec's stomach knotted at the implication. "Let me get this straight. Either I let myself get…" his mind refused to supply the word _raped_, "or I'm gonna throw down with the next female I see, whether she wants to or not?"

"In short? Yes."

Even blind, Alec's eyes widened in panic at the thought. What if Max managed to rescue him before he submitted to Renfro? He was faster than Max. He was stronger. Would he really be able to hurt her like that just to make the pain stop?

Bradbury could see the calculations occurring behind Alec's clouded expressions. He shook his head sadly. "It's not a matter of _wanting_ to, kid. You probably wouldn't even realize what you were doing until it was over and the drugs had cleared your system. Your primal instincts will take over completely."

"You can't let this happen," Alec stated, his mind made up. Last time it came down to Max's life or his own head exploding, he chose her life over his own, and this time wasn't any different.

Whether he admitted it aloud or not, he cared about Max, even more than his own well-being. That left him with only one other option. "You have to kill me, Doc. It's the only way."

The man immediately took a step back. "I… I can't do that."

"You don't have any other choice!" Alec barked. "Believe me, I don't wanna die, especially not in this hell hole, but I'm not gonna sink to Renfro's level just to survive either. You designed this drug, and now you have to own up to the consequences. Please. I can't do it myself."

"I'm sorry for the part I've played in all this, but I told you, kid. I'm not a murderer. I can't help you."

Alec could feel the stabbing pain and the need growing inside him again. He was done playing games. "You _will_ kill me or, I swear to God, the second I get outta here, I'm payin' your wife and kids a visit."

Bradbury bristled at the threat, but he knew it was a hollow one. Alec didn't have a vindictive bone in his body. The boy was just scared and trying to provoke him into doing something rash. There had to be another way out of this.

"Just give me some time. I can try to…"

"Damn it, Doc, we don't _have_ time! Renfro's comin' back in less than twenty minutes and I…" _can't hold out much longer than that. _"Look, if you're not man enough to finish what you started, find Mole. He'll get the job done."

"Mole?"

"A transhuman stationed here. Believe me, you can't miss him."

"Don't do this, Alec," the man stated softly, catching Alec by surprise. It was the first time the doctor had ever used his given name. "Don't give in to her. From what little time we've spent together, I can tell you're stronger than you give yourself credit for. Keep fighting, and I'll do what I can to help. Just don't give up. Not yet. Okay?"

Alec was running on fumes and only the pain was keeping him conscious. He was pretty sure they both knew that too, but something in the man's voice gave him enough strength to nod his head and actually mean it.

He didn't want to die. He had only recently tasted the sweet nectar of freedom and he wasn't willing to give up on the thought of ever having it again. If the man could find another way out, he'd suffer through the pain a bit longer.

But if all else failed, he wasn't afraid to take that final leap if it meant protecting the few people in this world that he cared about. "Clock's tickin'."

DA-DA-DA

"We need to get out of the street, Cale," Lydecker insisted, staying alert and keeping his eyes primed for any movement in the area.

Joshua stepped towards Logan and Max, ready to help lift her but Logan held up a gloved hand. "I got her, big guy." With a whirring groan from his exoskeleton, he slowly rose to his feet, the woman he loved cradled against his chest.

Lydecker nodded to him. "Alright. Everyone back in the truck. We're movin' out."

"Where are we going?" Josh asked as the ragtag team piled back into their stolen form of transportation.

"Well, we sure as hell can't go back to Cale's," Lydecker grumbled, feeling the need to state the obvious.

"We should get Max to Sam's. He can…" And then Logan paled. He had completely forgotten the good doctor had been at his place during the raid. "Oh my god… Sam."

"Who?" Lydecker asked indifferently.

"Sam! Dr. Carr! He was the one looking after Alec when White and his men showed up. Did he make it out alive?"

"Oh. Him. Honestly? I forgot he was even there. The coward squirreled behind a couch and that was the last I saw of him."

"Think he's still hiding out there?"

"You better hope not. When White's little assassin doesn't report back on time, they'll send a clean-up crew to fix his mess. In fact, they probably already have. If the doc didn't make a run for it before they showed, he's probably a piece of charcoal by now."

Logan bit his bottom lip in thought, then carefully shifted Max so he could pull his cell phone from his back pocket. "Sam's not stupid. He'd have snuck out first chance he got. I'll see if I can track him down. Until I do, we should head for his office to lay low. There'll be medical supplies we can use. You should get that arm cleaned up."

Lydecker looked down at the bloody bullet hole in his arm and grunted noncommittally. "Barely a scratch."

Logan scoffed. "Right. A scratch that went in one side of your shoulder and out the other."

Ignoring Lydecker's grumbled response, he hit the speed dial number for Sam and waited with bated breath while it began to ring. He glanced down at Max's peaceful face and felt the tightness in his chest loosen the slightest bit. At least they got her away from Manticore.

_One down, and one to go._

DA-DA-DA

Red-hot needles. That's what it felt like. Millions of them, jabbing into every centimeter of Alec's body, sticking out of every nerve ending hidden in his flesh. He just wanted it to stop. He wanted _all_ of it to stop.

And that's when she came. Renfro strode into the room, her armed entourage in toe, and paused a few feet away just to gloat and watch him suffer.

Alec didn't acknowledge her return. He didn't move at all. In fact, he was barely breathing. Even that simple act hurt like hell. He was afraid to twitch a muscle while this drug was coursing through his veins.

"Alright, 494. Time to get my money's worth." Renfro turned to the men standing closest to her. "Let him down."

"But Madame, he…"

"He won't try anything, will you, handsome. After all, the more he struggles, the more he hurts himself. Trust me, 494 is no longer a threat."

"Yes, Ma'am," one of the soldiers replied, then reluctantly moved to Alec's side. The transgenic's bonds were suddenly released and Alec fell to his knees with a jarring impact.

His hands shot out just in time to prevent himself from taking a nosedive into the floor. Alec's biceps shook with the strain, his arms no longer strong enough to support his own weight.

Thick arms wrapped around his chest from behind- one above his right shoulder and the other underneath his wounded left one like a seatbelt- dragging him backwards at an awkward angle so that he was reclining back on his heels instead of on all fours.

Alec instinctively tried to break free of the restraining bear hug, then growled in frustration as more hands joined the fray and wrestled him down flat on his back. His wrists, shoulders, and ankles were pinned to the ground within seconds.

He squirmed weakly against the cold floor, but it was pretty clear he wasn't breaking free anytime soon. His strength had abandoned him and the pain was consuming him from the inside out.

Alec heard Renfro's approaching heels come to a stop between his bowed legs and he clamped his mouth shut. Despite the agony and fear he felt, he wasn't about to let this bitch have the satisfaction of hearing him whimper or plead. He may be on the verge of death, but he was going to die a man.

He gritted his teeth when Renfro crouched down and placed her hands on his tense, jean-clad thighs. To his shock, the pain beneath her touch immediately eased to a tolerable level. The longer her palms stayed in one place, the more the stabbing feeling faded to a tingling sensation.

So _that_ was the _real_ torture. Pain he could handle. After all, he was trained to withstand enemy interrogations. But the _absence_ of pain was how they were going to break him.

They wanted him to beg for her touch; beg for her to take away the agony that was now coursing through his body in waves. When she lifted her hands, the pain came back tenfold. Alec bit into his bottom lip, drawing blood as he fought to stay conscious.

"It doesn't have to hurt, 494," Renfro cooed for a second time, tracing random patterns across his quivering abdomen with one finger. It wasn't enough contact to grant him any relief, just enough to drive him towards desperation and insanity. "I can take the pain away if you ask nicely."

When Alec stayed silent, Renfro slowly slid her hands up his body until they rested on his chest; one directly over his heart and the other massaging the side of his ribs. His heart skipped a beat at the sudden absence of pain and he was already dreading its return.

Sweat beaded on his forehead and trickled past his temples. His arms flexed in his captors' hands but he knew it was futile to even try to break free. Alec's mouth went dry and his throat tightened, making it difficult to swallow.

"Just say it," Renfro coached, moving the hand on his ribs up to stroke the side of his face.

Alec jerked his head away, fought past the agony in his side that was oddly similar to broken ribs, and then forced one barely audible word past his cracked and bloody lips. "Please."

Renfro smirked in delight, leaning down until her lips were an inch above his. "Please _what_, 494?"

"P-please… get the hell offa me," he grunted back, a smirk of his own crossing his lips.

With a furious snarl, Renfro pushed herself off of him and the abrupt loss of skin contact made Alec's back arch off the ground, his heart stuttering a few more times in his chest as he gasped for air.

"You'll be begging soon enough, make no mistake," the old crone threatened and Alec twitched when her hands started pulling at his jeans again.

He wasn't proud of it, but he panicked. Rational thought went out the window and his mind reached out for any safety net it could find. Needless to say, he was reaching for Max. And he found her.

Alec was suddenly standing in a large white room where there was no pain, no chains or cages, and above all, no Renfro. Max stood directly in front of him, and she was smiling softly. The best part was Alec could _see_ her. He knew then that this was all a contrivance of their connection.

"Max… Where are we?" His voice echoed softly in the cavernous room.

"Somewhere safe," she responded simply with a slight shrug.

It was nice here. The air was warm and Alec could feel a gentle pulse ping-ponging through the air between him and Max. The pace of it was soothing like the ocean tide ebbing and flowing.

"Did you get away?" he asked, trying to keep the desperate hope out of his tone.

"Not sure. We were in a transport vehicle. There were gunshots. The driver lost control, and that's all I remember. Then I ended up here."

Alec paled. "Are we…? Are we _dead_?"

Max shrugged again. "I dunno. What's the last thing you remember?"

He shivered, wrapping his arms around himself for comfort. "Nothin' good."

Max frowned in concern, taking a step towards him. Alec immediately took a step back. "Don't, Max. I don't wanna hurt you."

"Why would you?"

"I can't explain it, but I'm not taking any chances."

"Alec, tell me what's going on. Maybe I can help." She stepped forward again, and Alec retreated once more. "Stop."

Alec felt a small electrical current race from his feet to his fingertips and shuddered, suddenly finding that his feet no longer obeyed him. Max strode right up to him and Alec stayed frozen in place.

She reached up to touch his face but he turned his head away, dropping his eyes to the floor.

"Look at me, Alec."

He shook his head slightly, feeling the weight of his emotions welling up just below the surface. Her warm fingers made contact with his cheek and he clenched his eyes shut, breathing hard.

"It's okay. You're safe here," she stated softly. "Open your eyes, Alec."

When he finally did, she could see the tears brimming in them and it broke her heart. She had only ever seen him this lost once; when he broke down at the side of Rachel's deathbed.

"I couldn't take it anymore, Maxie. I had to get outta there."

"Shh… You're alright now. She can't hurt you here."

She gently pulled him into a hug. He was shaking and kept his arms across his midsection, trying to keep himself from falling apart.

"I don't wanna go back, Max. Please. I just wanna stay here. With you."

The admission brought tears to Max's eyes and she blinked heavily to keep them at bay. She had to be strong for him, now more than ever. "We can't stay, Alec. I'm gonna get you out of there, but in order to do that, I have to wake up."

His forehead came to rest on her shoulder in defeat, the tears finally escaping to streak down his flushed cheeks. "You can't save me, Max. It's too late."

She could feel the defeat coursing off his body. "What are you talking about?"

"Whether I give in to her or not, Max, she's won. Don't come after me. It's not safe."

"I'm not just gonna leave you there, Alec," she stated sharply, pulling back far enough to look into his clouded eyes. "Don't you give up, you hear me? Whatever she's done, we'll fix it. We'll find a way."

"I don't care what she does to my body, Max. We're safe here. Why can't we just stay?"

"Because I _do _care, Alec. No soldier gets left behind, remember? I'm not gonna let you become her new plaything or her latest lab experiment. I'm gonna get you out. You have to believe that. Just hold on."

This time she stepped back and Alec's hand shot out to stop her, latching onto her forearm. "Don't leave me, Max. I can't…"

"Alec, if we stay here, we're both gonna die. You hear me? We have to fight."

"There's too many of 'em. I'm outnumbered and outgunned."

"Then you have to hold your position until I can get there." Alec was already shaking his head again in denial. "Listen to me. You survived psy-ops and reindoctrination. You can do this, Alec. I have faith."

In the distance, she could hear Logan's voice calling her name.

"I have to go now, Alec. Hang in there, soldier. I'm coming for you."

TBC

Max to the rescue? Please keep those reviews coming, and happy holidays to everyone!

This chapter is dedicated to all my lovely loyal readers out there as an early Christmas present. You guys are the best!


	25. To Rescue, or Not to Rescue

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Max dissipated before Alec's eyes and he sank heavily to his knees, feeling more alone than ever. On the plus side, there was no one there to berate him for his weakness when he hung his head and let his tears fall unchecked.

DA-DA-DA

Max followed Logan's voice and the next thing she knew, she was blinking up at him, cradled protectively in his arms. Logan smiled down at her, a relieved huff of laughter bursting from his lips.

"…Logan?" she asked in a barely audible voice.

"Max. Thank God."

She glanced around the truck, finding Joshua with a big toothy grin staring at her from the other side of the vehicle, and Lydecker behind the wheel, occasionally glancing up at her through the rearview mirror.

"She awake?" he asked, the question directed toward Logan.

"Yeah," Max responded for him in a stronger voice, slightly annoyed. "She's awake. What the hell happened? Where's White?" As she became more coherent, the pain in her head made itself evident, throbbing to the beat of her heart. Reaching up with a grimace, she found dried blood and a sizeable lump near her hairline.

Logan took her prodding hand into his own to keep it from the raw wound. "Easy, Max. You took quite a hit. Probably have a concussion…"

"I'm fine." To prove her point, she pulled her hand out of Logan's lax grasp and sat up, trying her best to hide the wince as she fought through the dizzy spells to get vertical again. "Just answer my questions."

Logan sighed, then did his best to catch her up, explaining Lydecker's plan of attack that nearly got her killed. While he seemed thoroughly pissed about it, Max just shrugged it off as par for the course when engaging in battle.

Though her head was killing her, she was otherwise unharmed and grateful as hell to be away from White.

"Ames and his men were injured in the crash but they were still alive when we left," Logan finished.

"That'll buy us some time, but not much. We need to get back to Manticore and get Alec out."

"Max, we can't," Logan protested. "You and Lydecker are both injured. We need to find a safe place to regroup and figure out the best way to…"

"He doesn't have that long, Logan. Trust me. We have to go after him. Now."

DA-DA-DA

It took a while for Alec to get himself back under control. But when he finally did, a deep anxiety settled into his chest and he pushed himself to his feet. He paced the wide expanse of the blindingly white room trying to ease the discomfort that was making it difficult to breathe.

He wouldn't have believed it before, but now he was starting to think that maybe _knowing_ what was happening was the lesser of two evils because _not_ knowing left him with endless possibilities, each more horrifying than the next.

Alec crossed the room once more and settled his back against the sparse wall before sliding down it to sit on the floor. He rested his elbows on his knees and ran his fingers through his hair with a drawn out sigh of resignation.

Maybe he didn't want to know after all. As empty as it was, he liked it here in this room. There was no pain or fear, and it was quiet and peaceful. He just wanted to stay. Maybe if he stayed here, he'd be able to keep Max safe when she came for him.

He knew she would. She promised. She would be risking her life once again to save his worthless ass, and the least he could do was prevent himself from pouncing on her the moment she arrived.

Alec let his head thunk backwards against the wall and blinked up at the equally white ceiling. One thing was for sure. He'd never take his sight for granted again, if and when he ever got it back.

Maybe if he just stayed here for the next forty-eight hours or so…

Pain suddenly seared through his chest and his vision darkened. He lurched forward, clutching a hand over his heart and gasping. It was pounding wildly beneath his fingers and his head began to swim.

"What the…?" he panted. Another pang was harsh enough that he tried to jolt away from the agony, twisting and writhing as he hit the cold floor hard with his back. His vision was tunneling in and out, flip-flopping between the white room and his darkened cell.

He was being pulled back to consciousness against his will. _No no no no no…!_

Alec reached out for something, _anything_, to grasp that could keep him grounded in this place but there was nothing. He was pretty sure his heart was about to explode, and suddenly, he realized he could no longer move. His arms, legs, and waist were being held down.

A sharp, invisible slap to the face brought him crashing back to reality with a painful thud. He grimaced, opening his eyes to find that the white room was gone and there were dark and blurry figures all around him, trapping him in place.

He jerked and hissed through his teeth as a large syringe was yanked out of his chest. At first, he didn't understand what was happening. Then he started to connect the dots. _Adrenaline…_ They had injected it straight into his heart to wake him up. _Bastards._

It felt like liquid fire coursing through his system, but it was nothing compared to the abrupt return of all the other aches and pains he had been blissfully unaware of not five seconds ago. The agony was overwhelming.

Alec's jaw fell open, unable to keep in the scream that was tearing its way up his throat, but a heavy hand quickly clamped down over his mouth to muffle the sound. His eyes widened in panic, then a smaller hand grasped his good shoulder.

"Take it easy, kid," the person straddling his stomach instructed, syringe still in their other hand. "I know it hurts, but you need to keep quiet."

Alec's panicked eyes flickered over to the sharp instrument because it was close enough that he could just about keep it in focus. Anything beyond that was still extremely blurred. But that voice… He recognized it, and to his utmost relief, it wasn't Renfro's. _Doc…?_

Before he could react, a much larger face leaned over him from above his head. Judging by the skin color, it was also the person whose hand was over his mouth and most likely keeping at least one of his wrists pinned to the ground.

"You look like shit, Princess."

Alec tilted his head back as far as he could (considering the position he was in) and there was no mistaking the green scales or smell of cigars on the transhuman's breath.

"Mfph?"

"Of course it's me," Mole responded, correctly interpreting Alec's muffled question. "Who else would risk their tail for a pretty boy like you? Well, I mean… Besides _these_ guys, obviously."

Alec glanced to his left and caught the vague outline of a bald and slightly deformed transhuman wearing a monocle; a guy by the name of Dix. He could only guess that Luke was the one currently clutching his ankles, knowing the two tech-savvy soldiers to be inseparable.

His eyes dropped back down to the blurry man sitting on top of him and his brows drew together in a clear sign of confusion. Unless Alec was very much mistaken, the doc actually blushed as if just realizing where he was.

"Right… Sorry about that. I'm gonna get off you now, but first, promise me you won't try to get up just yet. I swear I'll explain everything." As soon as Alec gave a minute nod, Bradbury shifted to the side and carefully eased off of the transgenic's body.

Alec waited a moment, then glared back up at Mole, silently demanding that he get his hands off of him. The transhuman shrugged. "Fine, but you so much as squeak, Princess, and we're all dead, got it?"

"Mph," Alec mumbled, then with a roll of his eyes, he nodded instead.

Finally, the hands released him and he was so grateful for the freedom, he actually felt lightheaded again. "Can someone please tell me… what the hell is goin' on?" he rasped, his throat completely dry.

Bradbury took the initiative in filling the transgenic in. "From what we could piece together, you checked out to escape from Renfro's… _ministrations_, only you went so deep, your heart actually stopped."

Alec's eyes widened again and he brought a hand to his chest, trying to sit up at the same time, but pain immediately shot through his torso at the movement and he grunted, squeezing his eyes shut to stop the room from spinning. Mole latched onto his shoulders and forced him back down to the floor.

"I told you not to get up," Bradbury chided. "Renfro called me in to revive you and I began CPR. Your ribs are pretty bruised, but I don't think any were broken in the attempt. They're going to be sore for a while though."

"Feels like I got… kicked by a mule," Alec gasped.

"Well I had to make it look believable, didn't I?" the man responded and Alec could hear the smirk in his voice, even if he couldn't see it. "I told her you were gone and that she should've heeded my warning that you weren't strong enough yet for this experiment. She took off in a huff and told the transhumans to move your body to the dissecting lab for samples."

"When I heard what was going on, I volunteered for the job," Mole piped in. "Call it morbid curiosity, but I had to see it to believe it. You were dead, brother. I was about to kick your ass for givin' up, but then the doc here said he could bring you back, it worked, and now we're gonna get your ass outta here before the bitch comes lookin' for spare parts."

Alec paled. _Dissecting lab? Samples? Spare parts? _ He abruptly turned green at the thought and bile burned its way up the back of his throat. Fully aware that sitting up was a bad idea, he rolled to the side and Mole quickly braced him as he began puking his guts out.

There was no denying he felt like total crap. The doc's cold palm pressed against Alec's sweaty forehead and the transgenic found himself leaning into the comfort and support. Bradbury's other hand rested against the back of his neck, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Sorry, son. The mixing of these meds can wreak havoc on the body. It'll pass though."

By the time he got the dry heaves under control, Alec was spent and shaking again, just riding the waves of pain he could no longer ignore. Mole eased him into a more comfortable position with an arm across his upper chest and the other around his waist so he wasn't putting pressure on Alec's bruised ribs.

The transgenic noticed then that someone had pulled his jeans back up to his hips. At this point, he didn't even care who it was. With unsteady hands, he reached down and fastened them, wishing there was a more permanent clasp aside from a simple button and zipper. Super glue maybe…

Judging by the pain and pressure he was still enduring, Renfro hadn't gotten what she wanted from him. Nevertheless, when he glanced back up at Mole, his friend quickly looked away. Everyone in this room now saw him as a victim instead of an assassin.

For a brief moment, Alec actually caught himself thinking eyesight was overrated after all. He dropped his own gaze, suddenly wishing he were alone. Mole ruffled his hair, trying to keep Alec's dark thoughts at bay.

"Come on, Princess. Dix looped the footage of this room on Renfro's cameras, but it won't take them long to figure out that somethin's up. We gotta go."

As Mole and Bradbury started to ease Alec off the floor, another burst of fire coursed through his system and chased the remaining cobwebs from his head. _Renfro failed. The drugs are still in my body. Max…_

"No!" He pulled his arms out of their grips, falling back to the floor again with a painful grunt, then scrambled away from the door until his bare back came up against the cold metal bars on the opposite side of his cell.

"_No_?" Mole asked quizzically, stunned by the panic written all over his friend's face. "What the hell do you mean, _no_?"

"It hurts, Mole. I can't control it. Please. You can't take me outta this cell."

Mole's features hardened. "The hell I can't." He strode over to Alec, closing his heart off to the sight of his friend wrapping his arms around the cell's bars, clinging to them as if his life depended on it.

Crouching down, Mole began trying to unweave Alec's arms and pull him free but the kid just tightened his grip that much more. If the transhuman pulled any harder, he would really hurt Alec and that was the last thing he wanted to do right now.

"Damn it, Pretty Boy. Let go or we're taking these bars with us."

"Get away from me," Alec practically growled, lashing out with a foot that Mole easily deflected. "I'm better off locked up."

"Alright, that's it," Mole stated, clearly fed up. "Doc, either _you_ knock the kid out or _I_ will. We don't have time to screw around here."

Alec's eyes widened in betrayal as Bradbury reluctantly pulled another, much smaller, syringe out of his lab coat. Clearly, he had anticipated this reaction from the transgenic. "I was really hoping it didn't come to this, Alec." He took a step towards the cowering man.

"Stay back," Alec warned him, looking very much like a feral animal being cornered. "Don't make me hurt you."

Mole snorted derisively. "As if, Princess. Now be a good boy for the doc and hold still."

As soon as Bradbury was within reaching distant, Alec surged to his feet- unleashing all the rage and pent up fear he'd been harboring- and he grabbed the doctor by the throat, his other hand encircling Bradbury's wrist to keep the needle at bay.

Unfortunately, that meant both of his hands were preoccupied and he wasn't able to prevent Mole's arm from snaking around his own throat, attempting to choke him out. Alec bucked against the hold and was forced to release the doctor's jugular in favor of trying to pull Mole's bicep away from his own trachea.

As soon as he let go of the man in front of him, Mole twisted Alec's free arm (not to mention his _bad_ arm) behind his back to keep him from moving around too much. Having effectively subdued Alec, he ignored his friend's gasp of pain and nodded to the doc.

Bradbury switched the needle over to his free hand and jabbed it into Alec's good arm. The lack of oxygen was already taking the fight out of the kid and his muscles quickly began to give out. The hurt expression in his eyes nearly broke the doctor's resolve.

"I'm sorry," he whispered to the beaten and broken boy in front of him. "But it's for your own good." Then Alec was surrounded by darkness once more.

TBC

Don't worry, reviewers! Renfro isn't done with our boy just yet, but I had to get him back to Max for some comforting. Plenty more hurt!Alec still to come though. Oh! And Happy New Year everyone!


	26. The Stench of Victory

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Lydecker parked their van a safe distance from the perimeter of the new Manticore. "This is as close as we can get without being spotted," he stated. "I'm assuming you've got a plan, Max?"

He glanced up into the rearview mirror again to find her quickly glancing away.

"I'm working on it."

"Well, that's just great," he grumbled. "Why don't we just sit here until one of the sentries spots us on his rounds?"

"You're not helping, Lydecker," Logan chided. "You've probably been in the building more times than Max has. Are there any weaknesses in the security?"

"After the primary Manticore went up in flames so spectacularly? I wouldn't count on it. If those people know anything, it's how to learn from their mistakes and clean up their messes."

"No one is _that_ good," Max argued. "There's gotta be at least one small chink in the armor we can exploit. Even the best military bases have occasional blind spots. You aught to know that better than anyone."

Lydecker fell silent as he thought for a moment. Then an idea occurred to him that made his nose crinkle in disgust. "There is one possibility, but it's highly unsanitary."

Max almost laughed in spite of the horrible situation. _Poor Alec, always getting dragged through the sewers these days…_

"Too late," Joshua suddenly piped up from the other side of the van. "They're coming."

Lydecker and Logan quickly pulled out weapons and Max crouched down, ready to spring into action. "What is it, Joshua? White finally catch up?"

Josh shook his head. "No. Alec."

"What?"

She was so startled by the transhuman's statement that she actually jumped when a heavy fist knocked against the side of their vehicle. Shaking off the shock, Max leapt forward and slid the heavy door open.

The smell hit her like a physical blow and she immediately retreated further into the van, an elbow coming up to cover her face. _No wonder Josh knew they were coming from a distance._

"You ladies goin' our way?" asked the tall lizard-looking transhuman who was carrying an unconscious Alec over one shoulder.

"Changed your mind about staying at Manticore?" Max questioned.

Mole shrugged. "I figured I overstayed my welcome there already." He grunted as he eased Alec into the truck. Max helped guide him to the floor of the vehicle, then looked back up at the transhuman as he started speaking again. "When the kid wakes up, tell him we're even now."

Max nodded, her respect for Alec rising when she realized he must have saved Mole's life at some point to warrant the returned favor. There was still a lot she didn't know about the man sprawled at her feet. He wasn't big on reminiscing about the past and she certainly couldn't blame him for it.

As Mole stepped back, Max was able to see the others standing behind him. There were two more transhumans she didn't recognize, and… Renfro's lapdog doctor? Her eyes immediately narrowed on the man as she stood over Alec's prone body protectively.

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?"

"Trying to right my wrongs," Bradbury replied, no hint of threat behind his words. The motley crew was beyond dirty and caked in a thick brown substance Max futilely hoped was mud, but of course, the stench said otherwise.

"Well right them somewhere else," she growled.

"Max…" Logan began but her furious glare cut him off sharply.

"No, Logan. You didn't see what Alec went through in there, and most of it was thanks to this man. I don't want him anywhere _near_ our people. For all we know, he's acting as a spy for Manticore."

Bradbury looked thoroughly ashamed and didn't rise to his own defense, but Lydecker spoke up instead. "Spy or not, he's comin' with us."

Max rounded on him. "Excuse me?"

"If he is working for Manticore, he'll turn right back around and let them know we're all still alive. In case you haven't realized, that's pretty much our only advantage right now.

"And on a side note, judging by 494's appearance, he's going to need medical help from someone who actually knows transgenics, and sorry, Cale, but I just don't have much faith in your man."

Max quirked an eye at Logan, hoping he'd rise to her defense. She ground her teeth when he sighed in capitulation instead.

"Sam can help with the superficial stuff like wounds and broken bones, but there's nothing he can do about the visions. Lydecker's right, Max. We need this guy."

"Fine," she barked. "But I don't want him alone with Alec. _Ever_. And we're blindfolding him till we get to Sam's. Get in."

The doctor gave a curt nod of acceptance and climbed into the van, trying his best not to look like a threat in any way, shape, or form. Max watched him warily until he settled in his seat, then turned back to the others.

"What about you guys? Comin' with?"

Mole shook his head. "This is the end of the line, sister. We got Princess out and now he's your headache to deal with. We're goin' underground until the heat blows over."

"Smart move. Keep your heads down out there."

Mole nodded. "Same to you. Take care of our boy."

"Count on it."

"Oh, and Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever the doc might've done while you were in there… We wouldn't have gotten Pretty Boy out without his help. Renfro thinks the kid is dead. She'll figure out the truth eventually of course, but the doc bought us some time, not to mention revived Alec when he flat-lined."

Max went ten shades of white and leaned heavily on the doorframe of the van. "He… he died in there?" Her voice cracked on the word _died _thanks to her throat closing up.

"The kid fought a good fight, but we all have our limits. Point is, he's back with us now and it's thanks to _that_ man. I'm not tellin' you to trust him cause he _is_ Manticore after all. I'm just sayin' cut him some slack if you can, alright?"

Max nodded, unable to get her throat to cooperate again. Mole sent one last look Alec's way as if to say goodbye, then he led the other two transhumans deeper into the forest.

Max sank to the ground by Alec's side, wanting to offer him any comfort she could but afraid to touch him. He was a mess of bruises, blood, and filth. The last thing she wanted to do was cause him more pain when he looked so breakable.

"Get us outta here," she ordered without taking her eyes off of Alec, and then winced when the rocky terrain forced a pained moan from the unconscious transgenic's lips.

She took off her jacket and slid it carefully under his head, then rested one hand against the side of his face to help limit the jostling as much as possible. His skin was so hot.

"He really cares about you," Bradbury stated softly from a safe distance away.

Max glanced up at the man. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing, really. It's just, I was brought in under the impression that the two of you were an assigned mating pair and nothing more. But he was actually willing to stay at Manticore as their lab rat if it meant keeping you safe."

Max looked back down at her fallen charge and couldn't help but see how young he truly was underneath all the bravado and devil-may-care attitude. She ran her thumb gently over his temple, feeling the need to try and sooth the pain lines she saw in his face.

He had been through hell. She had seen some of it, but knew it had probably gotten so much worse when she had been taken away by White. And he was planning on staying there for her safety?

"Idiot…" she mumbled softly, more than a little touched by the doctor's words.

"If I may be so bold, I'd say it's pretty clear you care for him too."

Max was starting to get angry again. "If you've got somethin' to say, spit it out already."

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to overstep or anything, but you should know he's not out of the woods just yet. He's currently under the influence of a strong debilitating drug and it's not designed to wear off 'til tomorrow. I'm afraid he's going to be in a lot of pain until then."

Her body tensed and her free hand balled into a tight fist. "What the hell did you do?"

"My job," he answered back, a bit defensively. After a short moment though, he sighed, his anger dissipating as quickly as it had come. Now was not the time to vent his frustrations.

"Look, Renfro ordered me to give 494… _Alec_, an experimental drug that would make him responsive to her touch, and hers alone. He will be desperate for relief until the drug clears his system, but trust me when I say there's nothing you can do for him."

"That's sick," Max hissed, her attention being pulled back down to Alec again when a soft whimper escaped his lips, his head shifting from side to side on Max's jacket as if he were caught in a nightmare.

"That's _progress_, apparently," Bradbury replied, though he sounded anything but convinced. "Yet another way for Renfro to keep her pets on a leash."

He watched as Max gently ran her fingers through Alec's hair, stilling his fevered movements and hoping to ease his suffering even the slightest bit.

"I'm guessin' hiring a hooker is out of the question," she grumbled, only half joking.

"I'm afraid so. There's only one person who can give him any kind of reprieve, and believe me, he'd rather suffer the pain."

"How bad are we talkin'?"

"Bad. He'll fixate on any female that passes by and he won't have any control over his instincts. You'll need to keep your distance until this is over. He'd never forgive himself if he hurt you in any way."

"Can't we keep him sedated till it passes?"

"I don't have anything nearly strong enough for that. He already has a dangerous mixture of chemicals in his system and he's building up a tolerance to the sedatives I've given him.

"His metabolism, mixed with the high fever, is practically burning the drugs off before they reach his system. They'll knock him out for an hour at the most, but considering how many doses he'd need between now and tomorrow, it would do more harm than good."

Max rubbed at her eyes wearily. They just couldn't catch a break these days. "I'll stay away if that's easier on him, but there's no way you and Lydecker can keep him confined if he's determined to get out unless we restrain him. He's not gonna like this at all."

"We'll get him through it, Max," Bradbury stated, trying to sound confident but failing miserably. "Whatever it takes."

Once they made it past their first sector point, Max nodded to Joshua who obediently wrapped a make-shift blindfold around Bradbury's eyes. She didn't want him knowing where Sam's clinic was for all of their sakes. Better safe than sorry.

Bradbury didn't resist in the slightest. He just sat silently and listened; to Alec's grunts of pain, to Max's cooing, to the sound of Logan's leather jacket rustling every time he turned in his seat to glance back at Max and Alec.

These people had become more than just a unit. They were a family. They all cared for each other, and they'd all die for each other. At that very moment, Bradbury stopped seeing the X5s as an exciting research opportunity, and started seeing them as humans, capable of feeling sorrow and pain, but also happiness and love.

He wanted to help Max and Alec more than ever now, not to advance science, but to let them live their lives the way they deserved; out of Manticore's destructive clutches.

"Max," he called out quietly. "I need a sharp knife and a lighter. Now."

Max bristled immediately. "Why?"

"Because Manticore is tracking us and I need to stop them."

TBC

Please keep those inspiring reviews coming! Thank you all for sticking with me!


	27. Bring Him In

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Lydecker silently pulled his hunting knife from his boot and handed it over his shoulder to Max, followed closely by the lighter in his jacket pocket. She took them both but didn't pass them on to Bradbury. As if she were stupid enough to hand this man a weapon…

"Where?" she demanded, already working on disinfecting the knife.

Bradbury hesitantly held out his left wrist. "Just under the thumb, in between the bones."

When the blade of the small knife was glowing orange, Max took his hand in her own and felt the area he indicated. Sure enough, she found a hard lump that didn't belong there.

"It was part of the hiring process," he explained.

Max wasn't big on violence, but she'd be lying if she said she didn't feel morbid satisfaction as she dug the heated blade into the doctor's wrist, eliciting a pained yelp from the man. _Serves him right._

The tracker wasn't very deep so she had little trouble locating and extracting it. Once she did, she dropped it to the floor and crushed it under her boot. "Anything else I should know about?" she asked as she tied a bandage from the kit tightly around the wound.

"No, nothing. Just…"

"Just what?" Max was nearing the end of her patience.

"Just that your friend is going to be waking up again soon. In fact, I'm surprised he hasn't already."

Right on schedule, Alec let out a feeble moan and his eyelids flickered but didn't quite manage to open. Max released the doctor's arm in favor of putting a steadying hand on Alec's chest in case he woke panicked and disoriented.

"How close are we, Logan?"

"Just about there," he responded, then told Lydecker to take the next right.

"What do I do if he wakes up?" Max directed towards Bradbury, anxiety flooding through her chest as she remembered she wasn't supposed to be around Alec just yet, let alone confined to a small space with him.

"Try to keep him calm. The less you touch him, the better. In fact, maybe you should move upfront till we get wherever it is we're going. Distance can only help."

Max pulled her hand off of Alec as if she'd been burned by his skin. First she couldn't touch Logan, and now this? Apparently Manticore was dead set on giving her a complex. She slid away from her fellow transgenic and towards the cab of the vehicle, giving him as much space as the van would allow.

Alec looked so helpless and alone, sprawled on the hard floor, his injuries visible to the world. After everything he had been through, he shouldn't have to suffer alone.

"Joshua take care of Alec now," the transhuman stated with conviction, crawling his way over to take her place by Alec's side.

Max smiled sadly at her big friend, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, looking as small as she felt. "Thanks, Josh."

Alec groaned again, his brow furrowing as his breath hitched in his throat. "…Max?" he rasped, having heard her voice nearby. His head twisted against her jacket as he searched for a clue as to where he was and what was happening. He could smell her…

"I'm right here, Alec," she responded, trying to sound reassuring.

"M-Max… You shouldn't… You can't be…" his words cut off with a gasp as he curled on his side, hugging his abdomen as stabbing pains flooded through his system at an increasing frequency. "God… Make it stop."

"Lay still," Joshua directed, placing a steadying hand on Alec's shaking shoulder. "Alec safe now. Alec free."

It took a moment for the pain to ebb enough for Alec to unclench his teeth and grunt, "How?"

"Mole," Max responded simply. "He says you're even now."

Alec chuckled in spite of the situation, but it soon broke off into a hiss. "Yeah, I guess we are."

"Save your breath," Max chided gently. "We're almost there."

"Where?"

"Sam's," Logan responded, then pointed out the windshield for Lydecker's benefit. "It's that building up ahead."

Alec concentrated on trying to take a deep breath but he was immediately assaulted by the stench of sewer and started coughing harshly. "Gah, what the hell is that smell?"

"You," Max stated with a scoff. "Compliments of the rescue team. We'll get you cleaned up when we're inside." The car rolled to a stop. "Alright, everybody out."

Joshua slid the door open and Alec immediately raised a hand to shield his sensitive eyes. He turned his head towards the darker side of the car and caught his first glimpse of Doctor Bradbury sitting obediently in the corner.

"Max? Since when did we start takin' prisoners?"

Max, who was skirting her way around the walls of the van towards the open door, stilled at Alec's words. She glanced over at Bradbury, then looked down at Alec to respond but the words died in her throat when she found him looking back at her, expectantly.

"Alec?" She waved a hand from side to side and felt her heart thud painfully in her chest when his clouded green eyes followed it in confusion. "You…? You can see?"

He shrugged with his good shoulder. "Still a little blurry, but yeah. My sight's been comin' back slowly over the past few hours. Perks of bein' genetically enhanced I guess."

Max felt a wave of relief hit her, but it was short lived. "Damn it, Alec. Why didn't you say something earlier?"

She rerouted her direction and began sliding back towards Alec, intending to use her jacket as a temporary blindfold until they found something better, but as she neared him, his eyes widened in panic and he scampered as far away from her as the small space would allow, his back colliding with the far door.

The cry of pain that left his mouth stopped Max in her tracks. She held out a hand instinctively to help him but quickly pulled it back. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Alec. I wasn't thinking."

"'s okay," he grunted past clenched teeth, his fists curled so tightly his nails were cutting into his palms as he tried to breathe through the pain again.

"Joshua, can you carry him?" Max asked as she gracefully slid out of the truck to give Alec more space.

"Max, I can walk," Alec protested, trying to push himself into a sitting position and failing.

"No, Alec. You can't. Especially not once the blindfold is back in place."

The tortured look he shot her nearly broke her resolve. "Oh come on, Maxie… I just got my sight back!"

"Exactly. The last thing you need is to go into another vision cycle we can't break. It's for your own good."

"I really wish people would stop saying that," Alec mumbled, looking dejected. "Please, Max. Let me have a little dignity here. At least let me walk my ass into the building first."

Silence fell over the group as they waited for Max to decide. Though it went against every instinct she had, she nodded. "Fine. Josh, help him up. The sooner we get inside, the better."

Finding a new confidence in himself at Max's acceptance, Alec finally managed to push himself into a sitting position against the far wall. Josh crawled back to his side and wrapped Alec's good arm over his shoulders.

As carefully as he could, Josh maneuvered Alec out of the vehicle and stood him upright. Or at least, as upright as the kid could get while cradling his bad arm against his throbbing stomach.

The world spun around Alec and his legs shook as he took his first step towards the building. Josh's hasty momentum pulled Alec forward faster than his legs would allow, throwing him off balance, and he would've fallen to the ground had it not been for his friend's tight hold on him.

"Wait wait wait…"

"You guys okay?" Max shot over her shoulder, already regretting her decision to let Alec torture himself even more just to keep up his tough facade.

"Yeah," Alec bit out, blinking hard a few times until the street stopped swaying around him. Only then did he realize he was the one doing the swaying. "Yeah, we're good."

"Let's move then. Lydecker, take lead."

Gun drawn, the colonel entered the building first as instructed, followed closely by Logan who directed him. Josh and Alec were next, looking like contestants in a three-legged race, and Max brought up the rear, dragging Bradbury with her while keeping an eye on all exits as they progressed.

The ragtag team slowly made their way through the building and up to the third floor where Sam's office was. When the elevator doors opened, they were greeted with nothing but silence.

"What if your friend's not here, Cale?" Lydecker led the way into the office space, gun drawn and clearing each exam room as they passed through the main hall.

Max's ears picked up a slight creek from a floorboard up ahead. "Well, _someone's_ here." She released Bradbury's shirt and switched positions with Joshua, motioning for him to hang back and keep Alec safe, then flanked the Colonel as he turned the corner and took aim.

"Don't shoot!" squeaked a familiar voice, the man's arms going up automatically in surrender.

Logan shouldered his way to the front of the group. "Sam?"

"Logan? Oh, thank god. When those people raided your place, I thought the worst."

"So did I. How'd you get out?"

"A lot of luck and a fire escape. You?"

"One of the hidden passageways I had built during the remodel."

"Nice." His eyes shifted back to Lydecker and his brows drew together in confusion. "Hang on, I thought you were dead?"

"Yeah, I get that a lot," Lydecker snorted, then winced when his bullet wounds made themselves known again. "I've had worse."

"Uh, guys?" Max broke in. "Can we catch up later? We sort of have a medical emergency here."

Sam glanced between the three of them in concern, wondering which of them was so badly injured when they all looked relatively okay. Max shook her head. "Not us. He's waiting by the door."

Sam stepped out of the room and glanced down the hallway where Joshua stood, his gaze locking on the weak and distressed looking Alec who was barely managing to hold his own head up now. "Jeez… Does this kid actually have nine lives?"

"Let's hope he's got more than that," Bradbury responded. He had removed his blindfold and begun checking the exam rooms to see which one was best equipped for Alec's situation. "He's already used up quite a few."

"And who is this guy?" Sam questioned, glancing between Max and Logan as he asked.

"He was one of Manticore's scientists," Max supplied. "Believe it or not, he's here to help."

"This room will do," came the man's voice from halfway down the hall. "Bring him in."

Max and Lydecker reached the room first. While the colonel seemed calm and accepting of the situation, Max immediately bristled when she realized that Bradbury had chosen the only room in the place with restraints attached to the exam table.

She held up a hand, halting Josh's approach. The dog boy cocked his head at her in confusion, but did as he was told, shifting Alec's arm further over his shoulders and taking on more of his weight as Alec's knees began to give out. His reserve energy was already spent.

Turning back to Bradbury, Max put as much heat into her words as she possibly could, making sure her threat carried through to him. "Only when and _if_ they become absolutely necessary, understand?"

Bradbury nodded his acceptance, then threw his blindfold to Max who caught it deftly. She hesitated for a moment before reluctantly handing the cloth to Lydecker.

Alec raised his head a bit higher and tensed when he saw the formidable man approaching him with the blindfold clenched in his hand. "Time's up, son," he stated, almost apologetically.

There really wasn't much Alec could do but hold still as his old nemesis secured the cloth around his eyes and forced him back into the darkness he hated so much. When Lydecker released him, Alec's chin dropped to his chest in defeat.

The colonel patted him gently on the back. "Hang in there, kid. It's only till we figure out how to get you back to normal."

"What if this _is_ the new normal?" Alec asked quietly, voicing the fear that was on everyone's minds.

"Don't think like that," Max scolded.

"But, Max…"

"Shut up. We'll figure something out. Josh, bring him in."

Josh practically carried Alec to the doorway, then stopped abruptly when he saw what awaited his friend. "Max?" His voice was low, a whimper in his tone.

Bradbury paused in his rifling through the medical draws to look at the cluster of people in the doorway resignedly. They didn't have any choice in the matter. It was clear things were going to get worse before they got better, and he knew from experience just how bad things could really get.

Max sighed with a heavy heart as she came to the same conclusion, then repeated, "Bring him in, Josh."

TBC

Sorry for the late update once again, but hope it was worth it and more to come as soon as I can get it typed! Please review!


	28. Out of Options

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Max stood aside and watched as Joshua supported Alec all the way to the examination table. There was a time when Alec could've scaled this building from the outside without breaking a sweat, but now, the walk from the van to this room drained him of all the energy he had left.

_Stubborn idiot._

He looked flushed, out of breath, barely conscious, and streaks of sweat cut clean trails through the muck on his face and chest. He actually looked _grateful_ as he slumped onto the barely padded table, an expression no Manticore alum should ever associate with the medical field; not in any way, shape, or form.

As soon as he was down, the two doctors set to work. Alec could hear them bustling around and it unnerved him that he couldn't see what was happening. He gripped the edges of the cot tightly, using it to tether himself to consciousness and also hoping it would make his shaking a little less obvious.

Sam filled a few basins with water and tossed a clean cloth to Bradbury. Before they could do anything to help the kid, they had to be able to see the extent of the damage. Knowing his patient was on edge, Sam gave Alec a friendly head's up as he prepared to get started.

"Okay, buddy. Let's get you cleaned up a bit."

He carefully lined Alec's torso with rolled up towels, then slowly poured one of the buckets over his neck and chest, rinsing the grime off of his skin. Alec tried to lift his head when the first few drops splashed against his overheated body but Bradbury guided him back down with a hand to his forehead.

"Easy, Tiger. It's just water."

Once Alec relaxed a little and dropped his head back to the padded table, Bradbury began using the wet cloth to gently scrub at the kid's bruised and bloodied face.

Had he not been on the verge of passing out again, Alec would have been mortified at the fact that two grown men were currently bathing him while his closest friends (and enemies) watched from a few feet away.

But then a jolt of pain seized through his body again, and embarrassment suddenly became the farthest thing from his mind. He clenched his jaw and his breath caught in his chest, his entire body going rigid. The pain was getting worse every time it hit now.

Alec's fingers nearly punched straight through the metal of the cot as his muscles corded and his back arched off the exam table. A sound that was a mixture between a tortured moan and a scream tore through his throat and he could feel tears leaking out of the corners of his clenched eyelids.

Thankfully, the blindfold quickly absorbed them so no one else would see the proof of his weakness. _Finally_… One small perk for the damned piece of rolled-up fabric.

"Stay with us, Alec," Sam demanded, placing one hand over the transgenic's rapidly beating heart and the other against the erratic pulse in his neck. The doctor's eyes shifted up to Bradbury. "He's going to go into cardiac arrest if we don't do something soon."

The Manticore medic hung his head for a moment, then glanced over his shoulder at the other transgenic in the room. "Max…"

She bristled immediately, knowing what he was about to say. "No," she responded firmly.

"He's not gonna be able to take much more of this," he stated defiantly, attempting to argue his case. "At this rate, he won't survive the night. We need to…"

"It's not an option. Find another way."

"What's going on?" Logan questioned, glancing between their two heated gazes.

"We're _not_ taking him back to Manticore," Max growled, ignoring Logan's interruption. "He's suffered enough at their hands."

"Then at least be humane about this and snap his neck before the pain gets any worse," Bradbury volleyed back angrily. "Cause standing around helplessly ain't doin' him any favors."

Max balked at that, watching as Alec slumped back down to the table, arms wrapped around his midsection and trying to curl into a fetal position to ease the echoes of agony that were still pulsing through his muscles.

Bradbury dabbed the towel against the sweat dripping down Alec's face, offering as much comfort as he could give. The kid could do little more than whimper at his touch. He tried to hide his face from everyone else in the room.

Max knew how mortified she would be had she been in Alec's position with a room full of people watching him fall apart. She turned to Lydecker and Joshua. "Clear out, guys. Let's give the docs some room to work."

Lydecker considered arguing for a moment, having always been present during Alec's physicals and testing in the past, but he knew he was being more of a hindrance than a help in here. He nodded, then tugged Joshua's arm on his way past, leading them both out the door. Logan followed but waited just outside the room for Max.

She almost smiled when she saw some of the tension leave Alec's strained body. It wasn't much, but at least it was something. She retreated to the doorway as well but paused just inside it, turning back to keep an eye on her fellow soldier. She didn't have the heart to leave him just yet.

Sam grabbed a bottle of water from the mini fridge in the corner and uncapped it, then returned to the kid's side. He eased the bottle to Alec's dried and cracked lips. "Here. Small sips."

Alec managed two swallows before coughing the fluid back up again. He wrapped his arms tighter around his midsection, his forehead nearly touching his knees. Maybe if he could just shut the world out, it wouldn't hurt so badly…

Max felt cold and empty inside when she saw Ben's twin attempting to internalize the torture he was enduring. It didn't work out so well for 493 when he tried to do the same. She wanted to go to Alec, to hold him. But the best she could do was reach out to him through their connection.

She pushed tentatively towards him, but her way was blocked by a mental fence of barbed wire that he was apparently using to fortify himself against her intrusions. He was determined to suffer alone.

He was determined to _die_ alone.

Max took a moment to consider her options again. None of them were particularly enticing, but she wasn't about to lose Alec over a matter of pride. She looked up to find that Bradbury was still watching her, waiting for her to come to her senses. She straightened up, pulling herself back together and regaining control of the situation.

"Do what you can to keep him comfortable," she instructed Doctor Carr. "Logan, Bradbury… I need a word." Silently, she stepped out into the hallway and waited for Eyes Only and the Manticore doc to follow her into a more secluded area of the building.

Back inside the room, Sam was still trying to get Alec to drink but he refused the water. He knew he would just choke on it again anyway and that would set off another cacophony of painful spikes through his body. The effort just wasn't worth it.

Sam tilted the bottle once more, gently directing the kid's head towards the ceiling with a hand to his cheek, but Alec kept his mouth tightly shut, resulting in the water pouring down his chin and neck.

"Come on, buddy. We can't have you getting dehydrated on top of everything else. You've gotta try to keep it down."

Alec turned his face away from the bottle when he felt the pressure increasing against his lips as Carr tried to pry them apart by force. "Stop," he panted out, sounding completely exhausted. "Just… stop. Please."

Sam sighed, then put the bottle down. "Fine. We'll try again in a few minutes. Just relax for now."

Picking up the second bucket of water, Sam tilted Alec's head up again, this time by his chin. He ignored the feeble groan of annoyance, then began rinsing the muck out of Alec's hair and away from the jagged cut above his temple.

The water had cooled considerably from when Sam had first filled the buckets and shivers raced up and down Alec's spine as the lukewarm fluid trickled over his scalp and down the back of his neck.

Alec's hand shot up in surprise and latched onto Sam's wrist but the doctor wasn't phased. He kept right on pouring and spoke gentle words of comfort to try and sooth his fevered patient.

"Easy, Alec. Almost done. Lie still. You're okay…"

When Alec was sufficiently clean (at least from the waist up), Sam placed the empty buckets under the table, then grabbed a fresh towel and began patting him dry, mindful of all his wounds and bruises. He could feel the kid shaking beneath his hands and the last thing they needed was for his fever to rise even higher.

As he worked, Sam kept up a persistent pressure against Alec's bent knees and then against his good shoulder until he more or less had the kid straightened out and flat on his back again where he could get the best light on him.

Dropping the now wet towel into the empty bucket, Sam took a step back and got his first unimpeded look at all the injuries the muck had been concealing. He whistled in awe.

"You don't like making my job easy, do you?" he joked, trying to ease some of the kid's tension.

"What, this?" Alec chuckled back, his words ending in an involuntary hiss. "This is nothin'."

The transgenic's tone was purposefully flippant but the doc saw right through the false bravado. Nevertheless, he played along.

"Let me guess… You've had worse?"

Alec shrugged his good shoulder as Sam set to work examining the bullet hole in his left arm once more. "Probably. Can't think of any examples right now though."

"I suppose that's a good thing. How's the pain level? And don't lie to me." The doc carefully prodded the torn flesh at the edges of the wound, checking to see how badly it had gotten infected since the last time he worked on his patient.

Alec jerked away with a groan. "Pretty much off the charts."

Sam winced in sympathy. "Sorry."

"What are _you_ sorry for? I'm the one that got shot."

"Yeah, well… I'm the one who has to cause you more pain in order to help. Worst part of the job."

"Story of my life, doc. At least you're _trying_ to help. That's more than Manticore ever did."

Alec turned his face away, his hands balling into fists again, and Sam had the distinct feeling the kid was flashing back to times where the Manticore scientists had done more harm than good to him.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry for the way they raised you. _None_ of you deserved that kind of treatment."

Alec didn't respond and the room fell into an uncomfortable silence as the doctor gave up on the small talk and turned his focus solely to repairing whatever damage he could.

DA-DA-DA

A few rooms down, Max shut the door to ensure they had some privacy during their little powwow. She turned to the two men she had invited along. "Honest opinion, Doc. Do you think Alec can beat this thing on his own?"

"Not a chance. It's designed to get more potent and painful as time passes, and considering how bad his last episode was, the next one would likely put him into shock. After that, his immune system will shut down and it'll all spiral from there till his heart stops again."

"How much time?"

"Twenty minutes before he goes into shock. Half hour at the most."

"Any way we can postpone it? Buy ourselves time to think?"

"We can ice him down to slow the rising fever, but other than that… I know you don't wanna hear it, but he needs Renfro, Max. The sooner, the better."

"I told you. I'm not giving him back to them." Max crossed her arms and scowled at the man, daring him to say otherwise.

"I'm not suggesting you do. What if we bring Renfro to him? It'll be a controlled environment and one or more of us could stay in the room to make sure she doesn't take things too far or try to hurt him."

Max bit her bottom lip. She hated the thought of Renfro's skeletal fingers on Alec's vulnerable skin, but she was caught between a rock and a hard place. She hoped like hell he'd forgive her in time.

"Fine. Logan, find a way to get in touch with her and make sure she's alone. Take Joshua with you for cover. Bradbury, help Sam keep Alec alive till she gets here. Do whatever it takes."

Bradbury nodded and left the room, anxious to get back to his patient. Logan took a step closer to Max.

"He's never gonna agree to this," he stated in a low voice, knowing she hadn't come to this decision lightly but feeling the need to point out the obvious.

"I know. But he's not thinking clearly, which puts me in charge of the decision."

"And you're good with what'll have to happen?"

"No. But we don't have a choice. Renfro's the only one who can get him through this. When he's back on his feet, we'll deal with the aftermath. At least he'll still be alive."

"And if he doesn't _want_ to be at that point?"

"Then we'll deal with that too. Come on. He's running out of time."

TBC

This chapter was harder to get out than I expected! Hope you liked it though, and please review!


	29. The Calm Before the Storm

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Max returned to the doorway, staying just outside of Alec's exam room, and chewed her thumbnail as her nerves got the better of her. She had to tell him what was going on, but _how_?

She watched as Sam extracted the old gauze from Alec's shoulder wound and felt her stomach do a back flip. The injured transgenic squirmed on the table in pain and discomfort, but somehow he managed to stay silent through the ordeal. She guessed he didn't want to make the job any harder on Sam than it had to be.

But when the doc flushed the bullet hole out with antibacterial fluid and then packed it with fresh gauze again, Alec couldn't help but to let a few grunts of pain slip out. The effort to stay strong was pushing him closer to unconsciousness by the second.

He let his eyes drift shut beneath the blindfold while Sam taped a fresh bandage to his skin, and with his wet hair spiked in every direction, he looked all of ten years old to Max.

Doubt crept into her mind about the decision she had been forced to make and she massaged her eyes with her right thumb and forefinger, fighting back a growing headache.

She knew she didn't have any other choice in the matter, but that didn't make living with it any easier. Odds were, if 494 survived all of this, he'd never be her Smart-Alec again. He'd be broken, possibly beyond repair. But he'd be _alive_. The rest she could deal with in time.

"Alec?" Sam asked, breaking the prolonged silence. "You still with me, buddy?"

"Unfortunately," Alec mumbled back, teetering on the verge of passing out but not quite able to let his guard down just yet.

Sam chuckled, resisting the urge to pat the kid on the shoulder. He had to keep reminding himself that Alec could be dangerous at the best of times and the last thing he wanted to do was startle the guy when he was blindfolded and feverish.

"Alright then. I'm just gonna check your ribs for a second. You've got a lot of deep bruising across your chest."

"I'm afraid that was my fault," Bradbury admitted, reentering the room with a bucket full of ice. "I had to do CPR on him back at Manticore," he explained to the other doctor. "I don't think I broke anything, but it can't hurt to have a second opinion."

"Says you," Alec grumbled with a wince as Sam started probing at the dark purple and blue splotches on his torso. "There's nothin' broken, okay? Trust me, I can tell the difference."

"I'm sure you can," Sam acquiesced, but continued his prodding nonetheless until he was satisfied. "Alright. Anything else I should know about?" he asked, giving his patient another once-over, eyes primed for anything he may have overlooked the first time around.

"Just exhaustion, doc." With every response, Alec's voice was getting softer and more slurred. He wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer.

"Understandable. Get some sleep while you can then. It'll give your body a chance to start healing. Hopefully you'll feel a bit better when you wake up."

The wounded transgenic didn't need to be told twice. He was out before Sam finished his last sentence.

Bradbury was about to place ice packs around Alec's body but Sam waved him off. The cold would jerk the kid back to consciousness and right now, getting a little rest would be more beneficial to his health than an icing down would.

Besides, although they were hard to predict, Sam was sure Alec would be assaulted by another pain spike within the hour that was bound to wake him up. Until then, they'd just let him rest peacefully.

Still undecided on the best course of treatment for his patient, Bradbury eased the back of his hand against Alec's forehead to judge his fever. He was still painfully hot to the touch but his temperature didn't seem any higher than it had been earlier.

Relenting, he placed the ice bags on the floor by the cot, then stood over the sleeping boy, gazing down at him calculatingly. Transgenics really were amazing creatures. No human could have withstood what this kid had gone through over the past couple days.

Hell, Bradbury wasn't even sure all _transgenics_ could've survived it. Maybe Alec was just special. The scientist in him wanted to run some field studies and get some answers to his unlimited questions revolving around this higher evolutionary species, but the father in him wanted to protect Alec, even from people like himself.

He shared in Max's guilt over the decision about Renfro, but he could feel that this boy was destined for greater things and he wasn't about to see his life thrown away needlessly. It was his fault Alec was in so much pain to begin with, and he'd be damned if he didn't do everything in his power to see him through it.

Alec's forehead creased with pain and a soft whine hissed out of him that Bradbury was sure the boy never would have let slip had he still been conscious. Without thinking, he reached out and brushed his thumb lightly over the pained lines in his face, smoothing them back out.

Max tensed when she saw the man reaching towards Alec, still unsure whether or not to trust him, but then she settled back against the doorframe as she watched the tension slowly bleed from Alec's body.

The doctors she remembered from Manticore never would've bothered trying to comfort their patients once they got the samples they required. This guy was different. This guy reminded her of Hannah, the nurse who found her by the side of the road and cared for her when she was nine years old.

That didn't mean Max was planning on inviting him over for dinner anytime soon, but she had a bit more respect for the scientist now, whatever that was worth.

Sam cleared his throat and, realizing he still had an audience, Bradbury flushed slightly and dropped his hand back to his side. He turned to look at Max. "He's out. Now's the time to get him ready."

Turning back and steeling his resolve, Bradbury reached down and carefully began fastening the restraints around Alec's closest wrist.

Warm feeling gone, Max lurched off the wall and began striding towards him. "What the hell are you doing?!" she hissed angrily, trying to keep her voice down.

"Think about it, Max!" he hissed back, covering the restraint with his hand so she couldn't try to undo it. "Once he figures out what's going on, you really think he's just gonna sit still and let it happen? The second she walks into this room, he's gonna wanna kill her. And if _she's_ dead, then _he's_ dead. Got it?"

Max deflated like a punctured balloon. She couldn't believe this was really happening. Glancing down at Alec, she realized she hadn't been this near to him since they were in the van. Thankfully, her close proximity didn't seem to be affecting him while he was out and she took advantage of it.

She placed her hand on his uninjured shoulder, unsure if it was meant to comfort him or herself. This could very well be the last time he ever let her near him again. And if he took off to the other side of the planet when it was over, she could hardly blame him. Had their roles been reversed, she would've never forgiven him if he gave her to White.

She swallowed back the acidic bile that was crawling up the back of her throat as she released his shoulder, made her way around the cot, and locked the restraint around his other wrist, putting the last proverbial nail in the coffin that had been their friendship.

Sam gaped at them both as his brain struggled to catch up on the conversation he had missed out in the hallway. "Max, you're not seriously considering…"

"Shut up," she ground back through clenched teeth, unwilling to hear the words of her betrayal spoken aloud again. "Bradbury's right. It's his only chance," she added in a softer, rather defeated tone.

Realizing that in a scenario like this, he had to be all in or all out, Sam let out a long sigh, then approached the cot and gently fastened the restraints around Alec's ankles, doing his best not to reopen his old wounds that the cuffs at Manticore had given him.

"I really hope you know what you're doing," he stated as he worked.

"So do I," she responded, her hand lingering on Alec's forearm longer than necessary.

Just then, Logan appeared in the doorway. "Max…" His voice trailed off when he saw the restraints in place and felt the tension in the room. He shook himself mentally. "She's uh… She's agreed to come to us. Lydecker and I are going to meet her at a rendezvous point and drive her the rest of the way."

Max nodded. It was too late to go back now anyway. "Do me a favor. Take Josh home on your way. I don't want him here when she shows up."

"Are you sure?" If things got out of hand, Joshua's strength might come in handy after all.

"I'm sure. He won't understand. Tell him I'll come see him as soon as I can."

"Alright." Without another word, Logan turned and walked away.

Max wiped furiously at a stray tear that fell from her eye before turning back to the doctors.

"Don't worry, Max," Bradbury said, trying to sound confident. "Sam and I will stay in the room the whole time. He'll be okay."

"I know he will," she responded curtly, "cause I'm staying here too."

Bradbury looked like someone had slapped him. After a few seconds, he seemed to find his words again. "I… I'm not so sure that's a good idea."

"I don't care. If she does anything to intentionally hurt him, I'll take her out. For _good_, this time."

"No need to overcrowd the place and make him feel even less comfortable," Sam rationalized, "so I'll step out if you step in. Bradbury has more knowledge of what Alec is dealing with anyway. If you need me, just give a shout."

With that, he left the room. He didn't want to play any bigger of a part than he absolutely had to in this. Max walked quietly back to the wall and slumped down it onto the floor, keeping an eye on Alec as he slept and preparing herself for the inevitable.

"What do you suppose the chances are of him staying unconscious through this whole ordeal?" she asked Bradbury, only half joking.

"With _his_ luck? Slim to none."

"I was afraid of that."

"There's no sugar-coating this, Max. And there's no way around it. Hopefully he'll understand that in time."

"Yeah. Right."

"You realize that even if this goes smoothly and he survives the drugs, he still won't be out of the woods, right? I mean, unless you plan on keeping him blindfolded for the rest of his life, we'll need to find a way to stop his visions too."

"I know."

Max dropped her forehead to her raised knees, taking a moment to consider the man's words and to search for a solution. Her head shot back up shortly after, her eyes wide in realization.

"I think I have an idea. How much do you know about psy-ops?"

TBC

Please review! Renfro returns in the next chapter!


	30. Make It Stop

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"_How much do you know about psy-ops?"_

Bradbury frowned at her as he cautiously checked the stats of the unconscious transgenic in front of him. "More than I'd like to, I suppose. I've heard the horror stories. Why do you ask?"

"Just thinking out loud. I mean, Sandeman must've known how dangerous Alec's visions could be, right? If you believe Renfro, he's the one who found a way to keep Alec's brain from overloading itself, before Manticore came along and screwed it all up."

"What's your point?" Bradbury asked as he tested the give on Alec's restraints, making sure they weren't too tight or too loose.

"My point is, if they put up a protective barrier in his head once before, do you think they'd be able to do it again? Find a way to suppress the visions before they do permanent damage?"

Bradbury took a moment to consider. "I always figured the barrier was encoded into his DNA before he was even born. You think they altered his mind when he was a boy?"

"He told me he spent six months in psy-ops cause they were afraid he had the same anomaly as his twin, but I think that was all a lie. He wasn't there because of Ben. He was there because he was probably showing signs of mental deterioration, maybe seeing visions of me out in the real world, and he just didn't understand what was happening to him.

"He probably thought he _was_ going crazy, but Manticore must have known the truth. It took them six months to figure out how to build that barrier and who knows what hell he endured while they experimented with it. No wonder he's terrified of the place."

Bradbury dipped a fresh cloth into the melting ice beneath the table, wrung it out, then dabbed at the sweat that was beading on Alec's forehead. _The pain must be building again_, he mused to himself. The kid wouldn't be asleep for much longer if the frown lines on his face were anything to go by.

"It's a dangerous game to play, but I suppose it'd be worth a shot," Bradbury stated to Max, keeping his voice low as he slid the cloth down to Alec's flushed chest, wary of the deep bruising. "But it took them six months to do it right last time. You really think he'd go through that again and come out the other side of it?"

"I dunno. But if we don't do something, his visions are going to kill him and that would make this whole situation nothing but pointless torture. Besides, back then they were starting from scratch. I'm hoping this time around, they can find a way to repair the damage done instead. Maybe it'll be a quick fix."

"And maybe he'll be dead before we get the chance to find out. The pain is about to hit him soon, Max. And it's gonna be bad. If you really want to save him, you better get his salvation here fast. We can worry about the visions after he survives the detox."

Max checked her watch. Logan and the others had been gone for forty-five minutes. Knowing what time and which sector they were supposed to be meeting Renfro in, she did some quick math to calculate their ETA, factoring in the sector police checkpoints and an extra minute or two that would be needed to convince a reluctant Joshua to stay at home till Max came to get him.

"They should be here in the next three minutes, give or take a minute."

Alec's head began to toss on the plastic covered pillow and a low moan of pain accompanied the tensing of his muscles.

"Damn it. He's coming around," Bradbury announced needlessly, tossing the cloth aside in favor of refreshing the ice packs Sam had made earlier. He started placing them on and around Alec's body in hopes that they might help to numb the pain a bit.

Max stood back up, torn between going to Alec's side and keeping her distance. She hated this. He didn't deserve any of it. If Alec didn't kill Renfro when all was said and done, Max would. Of that, she had no doubts.

Alec cried out as the pain surged through his veins, tearing him out of his blissfully unconscious state so abruptly that he woke disoriented and terrified. The agony was so overwhelming, he could barely hear the gentle male voice over the blood pounding in his ears.

"Hang in there, Champ," Bradbury encouraged. "Just try to relax and breathe through it."

He knew that voice. He recognized this pain. But he couldn't open his eyes, and he was having trouble connecting the dots. His breathing was labored, and he was so damned cold.

"Hurts…" Alec gasped, lifting his head enough to bang it back down on the fake pillow, trying to delegate the pain elsewhere, even if only temporarily. Bradbury quickly placed one palm flat against Alec's sternum and the other applied firm pressure against the kid's good shoulder, preventing him from sitting up. "I know, kid. I know."

What more was there to say? It won't last long? You'll be okay? Bradbury couldn't bring himself to lie to the young man. Instead, he rubbed his thumb back and forth just under Alec's right collarbone, attempting to restrain and comfort him at the same time.

Pain shot through Alec's core and he jerked his arms up to sooth the agony, except his wrists barely made it two inches before coming to a sudden halt. Confused, he tried again, and this time he recognized the familiar feeling of padded cuffs against his skin. He turned the color of milk. "Wh-what…?"

"Easy, Alec," Bradbury cooed, moving his left hand down to cover Alec's wrist and keep him from pulling at the restraints.

Alec, ignoring the man, desperately tried to pull his feet up to gain some leverage but found his ankles were bound to the table as well. Bradbury practically had to lay on top of him to keep him still now; alternately pushing his knees back down, holding his wrists against the cot, shoving his shoulders flat with an arm across his upper chest… and Alec was terrified.

"What the hell is going on?! Get off me! _**Maaaaxxxx**_?!" he bellowed out, looking for an explanation, but also for confirmation that he wasn't back at Manticore. If she was there, at least someone had his back.

"I'm right here, Alec," Max responded instantly, sounding like she was a good twenty feet away. "You're okay. Calm down before you hurt yourself. Bradbury is just trying to help."

_Bradbury… The doc from Manticore. He was trying to help… _Alec froze as the puzzle pieces began to fall back into place. _Drugs, Renfro, visions, pain… _

Thoughts were flashing through his mind faster than a hummingbird's wings beat. It made him feel queasy but at least things were starting to make sense again. He was in Doctor Carr's facility and had been exhausted from the pain. _Must've passed out._

He gave the binds another experimental tug. Apparently while he was unconscious, he must have done something to make Max feel he needed restraining, but he couldn't remember. Had he woken up in a daze earlier and tried to make a run for it? Had he tried to hurt himself? Hurt the others? Hurt Max? _Oh god…_

"It's just a preventative measure," Max said when she saw the renewed tension in his limbs. She tried to keep her voice steady and reassuring. "We couldn't risk any mishaps, for our sake and for yours. I'm sorry."

He consciously slowed his breathing back down as he took in her words. They made sense. A transgenic in pain was unpredictable, and the last thing he wanted to do was hurt the people who were only trying to help. Maybe this _was_ for the best. With his jaw clenched, he nodded in acceptance and stopped fighting Bradbury.

Max closed her eyes against the trust he clearly still had in her. She knew she didn't deserve it, and that his faith was moments away from being shattered. The least she could do was be honest with him. Enough was enough. It was the eleventh hour, and she had to tell him about Renfro before things really got out of hand.

"Alec, I…"

Before she had the chance to finish, the office door swung open and a blindfolded Renfro was shoved into the hallway by an annoyed looking Lydecker, followed closely by a resigned Logan.

"Delivery," Lydecker groused, escorting Renfro forward with a tight grip on her shoulder. "One heinous bitch."

Alec stopped breathing. Max knew he could smell her perfume. It was hard to miss, and even harder to mistake. "Max?" he choked out, his mouth completely dry, and she felt a knife twisting in her chest at the sound. She could only imagine what that same knife felt like in his back.

"I'm so sorry, Alec." Words couldn't express how sorry. "We don't have any other choice."

"Max, please tell me you didn't…" He was trying to convince himself this wasn't really happening. That Max would never do something like this to him against his will. It had to be a horrible joke, or maybe a nightmare. Yeah, that must be it. A pain-induced nightmare.

"Looks like you couldn't survive without me after all, 494," Renfro smirked, blinking to clear her vision as Lydecker yanked the blindfold off her face.

The second her eyes landed on the traumatized and restrained boy, heat rushed through her body and she took a feral step towards him but came to an abrupt halt when Max cut into her path.

"Let's get one thing straight," the female transgenic growled. "You are here to make sure he survives this and for no other reason. If _he_ dies, _you_ die. If you hurt him, I hurt you. If I say stop or back the hell off, you do it or face the consequences, understood?"

"Max, don't do this," Alec tried again, this time pleading with her. "Not like this."

Max kept her eyes locked with Renfro's, refusing to be the one to blink first. "We are _not_ at Manticore anymore. You are _not_ in charge. The sooner you realize that, the better your chances are of walking out of here in one piece." _As if…_

Alec was wrestling even harder against the restraints now, opening the old abrasions he had received in Manticore's care. Max knew instinctively that he was causing the damage on purpose. They had learned that escape technique back at Manticore.

Use your own blood to slick up the bonds, then slip free at the most opportune moment for escape. It was better than breaking or dislocating your thumb because that would hinder your fighting ability, but those were always fallback techniques. She would have to watch him carefully through this ordeal.

Renfro finally looked away from Max and her eyes fell on the doctor who still stood by Alec's side, trying his best to keep the boy from hurting himself. "I was wondering where you got off to, Doctor. I do hope your sabbatical has been… enlightening."

"More than someone like you could ever understand," he grumbled back. He had always hated this woman, but now that she was on enemy turf and alone, he was no longer afraid of her.

"And what are your latest conclusions?" she asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"That none of you people have a damned clue what you've done here."

"Maxie, please…" Alec let out a strangled cry and began convulsing on the table as the fresh wave of pain hit him full force.

"Shit, Max. It's time to decide," Bradbury declared. "Either get her over here, or get her out of here. He's not gonna last much longer."

Max gripped the woman by the back of her neck and dragged her across the room to Alec's seizing body. "Make it stop. Now!"

Renfro stretched her gnarled fingers out and let them hover over 494's feverish skin, basking in the undisputable control she now had over the situation, before trailing her nails down his upper arm. It was barely enough contact to tickle, and Alec whimpered with the injustice of it all.

With a furious snarl, Max grabbed the woman's hand and pressed it firmly down against Alec's chest. Less than two seconds later, the seizures stopped and he went still, struggling to draw in air and stay conscious as his entire body throbbed to the beat of his heart. He swallowed convulsively, trying to keep himself from throwing up.

"There, there, handsome," Renfro soothed. "I'm here now." Her other hand cupped his cheek, making Alec flinch at the unexpected contact. She leaned over him and kissed his forehead.

He tried to turn his face away from those cold lips, but that didn't deter her in the least. Instead, she began peppering kisses all the way from his temple down to his clenched jaw.

As she worked her way towards his slightly parted lips, he bit out a threatening, "Don't." He could feel her lips pull into a broad smile against the corner of his mouth.

"I do love when you play hard to get, 494," she breathed, the warm air mixing with his own exhalation and causing his stomach to flip once again.

Renfro's fingers combed through his sweaty hair, then slid down to tug his blindfold off. When those beautiful green eyes blinked up at her, she shuddered with the vast amount of emotions she saw brewing in them.

He was torn between so many warring feels, his eyes wide with fear and confusion, yet hardened with defiance. His pupils were blown with lust, though they contracted temporarily when the random bursts of pain assaulted his body.

There was enough rage in him that she had no doubts he would snap her neck in an instant if his hands were free, but at the same time, he was desperate for relief and could just as likely throw her down and take control of the situation himself.

The uncertainty of it all had her practically purring.

Alec tried to school his features into the most loathsome glare he could manage, but then he screamed in anguish as Max yanked Renfro away from him and the contact that was keeping the agony at bay was broken.

His back arched off the cot and his nails cut deeply into his palms as the pain returned, even worse than it had been before. His eyes clenched shut hard enough that tears were forced from beneath his long eyelashes, trailing past his temples.

"What the hell did you do?!" Max demanded as she gave the frail woman a hard shake, fearing that Alec was experiencing another vision now that the blindfold had been removed.

"Not _me_, sweetheart. _You_," Renfro chuckled. "He's addicted to my touch and you pulled me away from him."

Starting to understand how the drugs actually worked, Max seized Renfro's hands again and placed them on Alec's chest and stomach. "Don't. Move," she growled before releasing Renfro's wrists, then stepped to the head of the cot.

Max wiped the tears from Alec's strained face in a silent apology and placed one hand gently on his forehead while the other rubbed against his cheek soothingly. As she stood there, she realized his chest was no longer moving.

"Breathe, Alec," she whispered to him. "You've gotta breathe."

It was almost another minute this time before the pain lessened enough for the air to stutter out of his lungs. "M-Max…" he gasped, when he was able to do so.

Alec was pretty sure he was on the verge of insanity because at this point, he was just about ready to do anything for a little relief. He tugged helplessly against his bonds once more, then cracked his watery eyes open to connect with the only person in the world who could get him through this.

"M-Max, make it s-stop."

"Shh… It'll all be over soon. Just stay with me." Max slid a hand down to cover Alec's pleading eyes, then- swallowing down her own nausea- she nodded to Renfro, giving the woman permission to continue.

TBC

Please keep those awesome reviews coming!

Special thanks to SilentHowler, PokeyDotes, SupernaturalCheetahFast, 25rhieannerain and to everyone else who has reviewed so far and inspired me to get this chapter written sooner rather than later. Thank you all for sharing your thoughts with me and for giving me a reason to keep this story going!


	31. One Cage for Another

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Renfro slowly walked around Alec, keeping her hands on his skin and coming to a stop above his head, forcing an annoyed Max to step slightly to her right. She refused to remove her hand from Alec's eyes though, giving Renfro a glare of defiance.

The older woman chuckled at her, then leaned down till her lips were next to Alec's left ear. Her palms continued to run smoothly up and down the flat planes of his chest and abdomen, enjoying every tremor that raced through his perfectly toned- and restrained- body. She would've never pressed her luck like this had he been free.

"You know, 494, there was a time when I almost didn't sign you up for the breeding program," she said softly, taking care to make sure Max could hear her words as well. "It was purely selfish, I'll admit, but I've read every soldier's file that came across my desk and not a single one of them was as intriguing as yours."

She broke off her story to lay a few gentle kisses against his prone neck. Alec was only half listening to the woman's ramblings, his brain caught in a haze between alternating currents of pain and pleasure. Renfro did, however, have _Max's_ undivided attention, and it was taking all of 452's strength to keep from wringing the evil woman's neck.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Max demanded, resting her free hand on Alec's good shoulder in a comforting yet possessive move. His breath hitched at the additional contact, but Max kept her focus on Renfro, waiting for her explanation.

"In short? His blatant insubordination," Renfro smirked, tracing the deep bruising on Alec's sternum and feeling his heart pound against his ribcage beneath her fingers.

Alec shifted warily under the touch, a barely audible groan slipping past his clenched teeth. Renfro kissed his neck, working her way down and out to his injured shoulder, her left hand coming up to stroke the skin around the gauze patch covering his bullet wound.

Alec stilled immediately, his breath coming out in ragged exhales as he fought to contain his fear against the threat of additional pain. The woman smiled, kissed his cheek before he had the chance to turn away, and then stood upright again to address Max.

"Lydecker and his team did everything they could to beat the disobedience out of this one over the years, but every time, he refused to crack."

Max felt a more distinct shudder run through Alec at Renfro's words and she tossed a heated glare over her shoulder at the man responsible. Lydecker stood mere feet away and quickly dropped his gaze. At least he had the decency to look somewhat ashamed.

"Only the tough survive, Max," he stated, trying to justify his actions. "You know that better than anyone. I did what was necessary, just like what you're doing now."

Max opened her mouth to respond indignantly, but words failed her. He was right, after all. What she was currently putting Alec through made her no better than the old colonel. Hell, it probably made her even worse. She swallowed against the lump in her throat.

Renfro watched Max connect the dots and smiled triumphantly. "Don't beat yourself up about it, 452. Odds are, he'll forgive you for this eventually. After all, you're doing it out of love, aren't you." It wasn't a question.

"You don't know what you're talkin' about," Max argued, but there was no conviction behind her words. She sensed Logan tensing behind her at Renfro's words but didn't acknowledge or placate him.

"Don't I? There was a time, back when I first came onto this project, when I actually wasn't sure your kind were capable of such love since that sort of behavior wasn't taught or tolerated at Manticore. But this one…"

She strode back around to Alec's left, sliding one hand down the side of his ribs to the waistband of his jeans and pressed the other flat over his heart. She felt it skip a beat.

"494 is the only soldier known to date who fell in love and failed his mission rather spectacularly," Renfro continued. "He knew what the punishment would entail, and yet, he risked his own life to save hers. Very touching if you ask me."

Alec's jaw flexed and Max was sure she heard the grinding of his teeth. He jerked against his wrist-cuffs again, hands balled tightly into fists. Max gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, silently encouraging him to relax and not rise to Renfro's bait.

"Regardless of what my predecessors put him through, this one still refused to break. I wanted to study him, figure out why we couldn't stomp out the independent streak in him, but then the X-6s brought you in and I realized how much the two of you were alike. So I used him to get to you, and in turn, to get to your boyfriend, Eyes Only."

Logan cleared his throat from the other side of the room, sounding incredibly uncomfortable all of a sudden. "I uh… I'm gonna go wait in the other room with Sam."

"My kids weren't designed to be your _pets_, Liz," Lydecker hissed furiously, ignoring Logan as he strode from the room. "They're soldiers, not puppies, and not prostitutes, you sick, twisted old hag!"

"You forfeited your ownership over your so-called _kids _when you left Manticore, Deck," she growled back. "Now they belong to me, and I can use them any way I see fit."

"Over my dead body."

"So we thought," she responded, sounding amused now. "That can still be arranged if you continue to test me."

"Why you little…" He began striding towards her, blinded by his hatred of the woman.

"Uh uh uh, Deck," she chuckled. "I hold all the cards here." She lifted her hands from Alec's body and he immediately thrashed against his bonds, muscles so corded they were no doubt tearing themselves apart with each involuntary jerk.

Lydecker came to an abrupt halt, paling as he saw the agony written all over his kid's face. "Stop it!" he commanded, then softened his voice and tried again. "Please, stop." He took two steps back to show his good will.

With her smirk still firmly in place, Renfro returned her left hand to Alec's hip and her right to his sternum. Alec was panting in shallow breaths, his anger, fear, and pain all warring to burst from his chest first. If he didn't get himself under control soon, he was going to hyperventilate or go into cardiac arrest.

Bradbury strode forward angrily, shoving Renfro's right hand a little lower and giving himself enough room to place a stethoscope over the kid's frantically beating heart. He glanced up at Max imploringly, informing her she had to do something, and fast.

Max nodded back. There was only one way to protect him from all this, but she knew Alec wouldn't make it easy. "Keep him safe, and keep him breathing," she instructed the doctor, then closed her eyes and reached out to Alec through their connection.

As she had expected, his barriers were as fortified as ever, but she pressed against them insistently. _Let me in, Alec. I can help. _His breath caught in his chest when he felt Max's presence nudging at him, requesting entry.

He shoved back, determined to keep her out. _No._

Refusing to give up, Max followed the tense muscles of Alec's good shoulder up to the side of his neck. Then she slid her fingers gently beneath it and began massaging the knotted tension from his coiled upper back to the base of his skull.

Mentally, she pushed forward again- harder this time- but her resolve nearly shattered when she heard him whimper in protest. His eyes were clenched tightly beneath her other hand and his head shook minutely, denying her entrance in every way he could.

"M-Max, stop…" he panted. "You don't wanna g-go in there."

"Shh…" she whispered softly, continuing her comforting massage. "You don't have to hide from me, Alec. Just let me help you."

He fought against her for another minute or two, but as Renfro's left hand shifted down to his thigh and caressed the taut muscles she found there, he was too desperate for escape and too exhausted to keep up the fight. Max's persistence finally won out.

He let out a small sob of defeat and she eased into his mind, finding herself in an endlessly dark space, one that even her enhanced night vision couldn't penetrate.

Glancing around and hoping her eyes would adjust eventually, they soon locked on to a small, dim ray of light, no brighter than that cast by a crescent moon in a cloudless sky, just barely illuminating the huddled mass beneath it.

Stepping silently towards the quivering frame, she instantly recognized the softly spiked hair of the head resting on a pair of jean-clad knees. Alec had his legs drawn tightly to his chest, his arms wrapped securely around them, desperately trying to keep his whole body beneath the soft glow of the light, afraid he'd disappear into the darkness surrounding him if he moved.

Max slid quietly down to her knees by his side and after a slight moment's hesitation, she wrapped her arms around his shaking shoulders and drew his fragile frame against her chest.

"I'm here, Alec. You're safe now."

"Maxie?"

He raised his tear-stained face just high enough for her to see the pain in his gold-flecked green eyes. They widened in fear.

"No… No, you can't be here…"

"It's okay. We're in this together."

Max pulled him tighter to her, placing one hand on the back of his neck and guiding his forehead against her collarbone. He tensed under her touch but didn't try to pull away. She ran her free hand up and down his back in a soothing rhythm.

His breath hitched a few times and she knew he was trying to pull himself back together, shoving his feelings back into his fortified lockbox, but it wasn't necessary here. Not around her.

"Don't fight it, Alec," she said softly, rocking him gently from side to side. "Just let it out."

His good arm wrapped around Max's back and his fingers clenched tightly to her leather jacket, desperately trying to ground himself. He was terrified he'd spiral off into the surrounding darkness and never find his way into the light again.

The oppressiveness of the air around them made it difficult to breathe. The constant pressure of the shadows was honing in on them from all sides and for a horrifying moment, Max was afraid it was going to swallow them up.

She suddenly understood the darkness was of Alec's own creation, and although he was terrified of it, he was on the verge of surrendering.

"Please, Alec. Share the load before it crushes you."

"I… I can't."

"Yes, you can. It's the only way to beat this. Just let it all go."

Another anguished sob burst out of him suddenly and all the emotions he had been concealing from her broke loose and hit her all at once like a tremendous blow to the gut.

She gasped as the feelings drowned her; everything from fear and sadness to anger, denial, betrayal… and even a slight hint of hope. She had never felt such overpowering emotions in her life. It was disorienting to the point at which she couldn't tell which way was up, if she was spinning or stationary, or even if she was floating or falling.

Images surrounded them- memories of Alec's painful past- and Max couldn't tear her eyes away. She saw the beatings he received for disobedience, the reindoctrinations he endured after failed missions, Renfro's less-than-subtle advances on him in the past, the torture he suppressed while spending six months in psy-ops…

She felt his agony when he thought Rachel had been murdered in front of him, and felt his undeniable guilt for being the one to put the bomb under the car in the first place. Then there was also the confusion and uncertainty he felt regarding Renfro's intentions.

Max heard Alec's screams when the fiery laser seared through his retina, heard his bones snap under the onslaught of kicks and punches from the rest of his unit for being the weak link in their chain. She heard him crying at night when no one was around to witness it.

The flashes, the feelings, the sounds, the taste of blood in her mouth… They were overwhelming and terrifying. All she could do was cling to Alec and hope it would stop soon. When she came back to herself, she realized tears were running down _her_ cheeks as well.

How could one person go through so much, then hide it all behind a quick wit and a cocky smile as if nothing had ever happened?

She suddenly understood why he was trying so desperately to keep her out of his head. He had worked incredibly hard to build his tough-guy façade and didn't want Max to see him for who he thought he really was… weak, lost, and broken.

Max laid her head against Alec's, cradling him like a scared child as he sobbed freely in her arms, finally able to breathe again as the darkness slowly began to retreat.

"It's okay now, Alec. I've got you. We can stay here till it's over, and I'll keep you safe."

He pulled away from her embrace at that, distrust filling his reddened eyes now that he could think more clearly. "Why should I trust you?"

"Because, Alec, I…" _I care about you. _"I'm only doing what's best for you. Please tell me you can see that."

He shook his head. "No. No, you've only done what's best for _you._ If you really gave a damn about me, you would've just killed me when you had the chance."

"You don't mean that." She reached out to him, but he jerked out of her reach, sliding a foot or so across the floor and closer to the shadows that still remained. He was quickly brought up short but seemed to have expected it, and when Max squinted against the thick darkness, she discovered that they were surrounded by cold gray walls.

A cell; one of Manticore's, unless Max was very much mistaken, and she knew she wasn't. She spent enough time in them to recognize the grout between the cinderblocks if pressed. To her, a Manticore "bunk" was no different than a cage.

It made her sick when she realized Alec considered a cell to be a safe-haven, the closest thing he ever had to a home. While it had kept him from ever leaving, it also kept others from going after him during lights-out.

It was a place where he could close his eyes without fear of waking up surrounded or captured by the enemy. It was probably the _only_ place he ever felt truly safe. And Max took that away from him when she burned the facility to the ground. She took it away from all of them. How do you apologize for destroying someone's sense of security?

She shifted towards him slowly, ignoring the tears on her face as they continued down her cheeks and dripped off her chin.

"Alec, I…"

"Stay away from me, Max. You don't wanna see what's inside my head."

And suddenly, Max found herself outside of Alec's cell, a heavy metal door separating them from each other. Glancing through the small window the guards used to check in on their charges during rounds, she saw Alec wrap his arms around his head and begin rocking back and forth to a rhythm he found comforting.

She had done this to him. She had broken him, possibly beyond repair. If he stayed locked inside his own head for the rest of his life, she couldn't blame him. It was better than facing the reality of his situation.

But if that were the case, he wouldn't be alone. Never again. Max turned and slid her back down the cold door, settling herself on the floor. She'd stand guard and make sure Alec was safe, no matter how long it took. She owed him that much, and more.

TBC

Wow, that was a draining chapter to write! Hope it wasn't disappointing, and more to come as soon as I can get it written! Thank you all again for your support and reviews.


	32. Fight Back

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Bradbury had to fight down his sudden panic when his patient went completely limp without warning. He rushed forward again, placing two fingers against Alec's carotid artery and checking for a pulse with bated breath. He let out a deep sigh of relief when he felt the sporadic fluttering against his skin.

He spared a glance at Max, noting her ability to stay on her feet by Alec's side. She looked strained, but in control. His best guess was that 494 had simply gone so deep into his own mind that he more or less disconnected with his body and plunged himself into a state of unconsciousness.

The kid had dropped all his defenses, and now, more than ever, Bradbury felt responsible for protecting the young man. He watched Renfro's wandering hands carefully like a cat stalking its prey, ready to pounce if she made the wrong move.

Judging by his calculations, Alec had made it through the worst of the drug by now. So long as Renfro stayed in contact with him for another hour or two, he'd beat this thing with little to no permanent damage done… physically, anyway.

And if he stayed unconscious while the clock ticked down, all the better. _This _Bradbury could work with. If he didn't have to see the agony on Alec's face or hear his pleading, he could convince himself this was just another day at the office; just a doctor caring for his patient, albeit with rather unorthodox medicine.

Maybe Max could use their connection to do what the tranquilizers couldn't and keep the kid under till it was all over. _And maybe unicorns really did exist and one would trot through the door and heal Alec with its magic…_

Bradbury forced the skepticism out of his mind. It wasn't going to do anyone any good.

Renfro was drawing lazy swirls across Alec's abdomen, her other hand resting comfortably on his upper thigh. "Now that the peanut gallery is out of the way," she began, tracing a circle around 494's naval, "we can discuss business."

"What are you talking about?" the doctor demanded while scanning Alec's head and chest with a thermal detector to gauge his fever. 107.8. _Damn it._

"I didn't agree to this little meeting out of the kindness of my heart," she responded, that gut-clenching smirk back on her scarred face. "I could've just let him die."

"Then why didn't you?"

The woman shrugged nonchalantly. "Waste not, want not. He's no good to any of us dead." She slid her hand back up Alec's chest and gently encircled his throat just above his collarbones.

Bradbury tensed immediately, ready to shove her back if she intended the boy any harm, but she didn't exert any pressure. She simply rested her hand just shy of his adam's apple and felt the rapid pulse beneath her fingers.

"What the hell do you want?" Lydecker growled and Bradbury jumped, having forgotten he was still in the room.

"What everyone wants, Deck," she replied. "A legacy to leave behind when I'm gone." She slid her fingertips up the side of Alec's neck, then used her thumb against his cheek to ease his face towards hers.

"We live on the fringe of society," Renfro continued. "No one will know or care that we ever existed."

"You knew that when you signed up for the program, Liz," Lydecker shot back. "We all did."

"But you found a way to make a legacy for yourself anyway, didn't you, Deck. Putting your wife's DNA into the gene bank back in 2000 ensured that. 452 is as close to a daughter as you'll ever get, and the things she is capable of… Any father would be blessed to call her his."

"So that's what this is all about?" he snorted. "Your biological clock is ticking and you can't find anyone desperate enough to knock you up?"

"I don't want just anyone, Donald," she hissed angrily.

"You want a transgenic stud," he finished for her, connecting the dots. "But not just any X5. You want 494, the cream of the crop. Christ, Liz… We don't even know if transgenics can successfully mate with humans. The results could be disastrous."

"And if they weren't? Think of the possibilities, Deck." She ran her thumb over Alec's split lip, transfixed by the young man's soft features, so at odds with the muscle tone of his body. "It could be the next step in evolution, and _that _would be a legacy worth having."

"Transgenics _are _the next step in evolution," Lydecker countered. "Their genes were hand-picked from the best and the brightest. Breeding them with humans would only sully the next generation's DNA. It's a step in the _wrong_ direction."

"Perhaps. But the way I see it, you don't really have a choice in the matter. Besides, my way is a win-win situation. Let me collect my samples for testing back at Manticore, and in doing so, the drugs will pass from 494's system and he'll be good as new in no time. Honestly, what do you have to lose?"

Silence filled the room as Lydecker weighed his options. Bradbury blanched at the man's hesitation. "Please tell me you're not actually considering this, Colonel…"

Lydecker sighed. "She has a point, son. Why drag out the kid's suffering when Renfro can end things here and now before he even wakes up? She can get her samples and get the hell out without him being any the wiser."

"The drugs will clear his system in the next hour or two. He can survive with minimal contact and…"

"I told you what I came here for, Doctor. If you're going to deny me of it, I'm leaving right now and you can explain to Max why you felt it was right to stand by and watch 494 die. The choice is yours, but decide quickly because I am a very busy woman."

Bradbury and Lydecker exchanged meaningful looks again, then Bradbury's heart plunged into his stomach when he saw the defeated expression on the older man's face. "Take what you need and go. Make it quick, and make it painless or so help me I will put a bullet right between your eyes without a second thought."

The doctor immediately placed himself between Renfro and her prey, though it wasn't an easy fit by any means. She was practically on top of Alec before Lydecker finished his acquiescence. "Don't do this," he begged on behalf of the young man behind him. "It'll destroy him."

"Don't be so dramatic," Renfro huffed with a roll of her eyes. "It's hardly the first time we've collected samples from him and he's already out cold. When he wakes up, he'll be good as new. Now step aside before I remove my other hand and send him into convulsions again."

He looked to Max for guidance but she was still in her trance-like state, protecting Alec the only way she could at this point. Bradbury swallowed down the bile that was creeping up his throat. _God forgive me_, he prayed. And then he stepped aside.

He debated on giving Alec a sedative to make sure he stayed under, but he quickly negated that thought when he realized he didn't know how that would affect the transgenics' connection.

"Good boy," Renfro praised him as if he were a dog doing a trick, then resettled her other hand on the waistband of Alec's jeans, unfastening them as she talked. "No sense in dragging this out any longer. Doctor, get me some collecting jars."

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

"Alec…" Max called over her shoulder when the silence began to drag on. The metal door was cold against her back and she drew her legs in closer to her chest, feeling the chill both inside and out. She didn't know how long they had been sitting there in silence, but it felt like hours.

"Get outta my head, Max," came the flat response. It would've been better if he had screamed it at her. The nearly robotic tone gave her no insight as to where his head was at or what he was feeling.

Was he still angry with her? Was he scared and secretly hoping she'd march back into his custom-built cell and pull him into a tight hug? Did he really want her to go away, or was he just putting up a front to protect himself again?

The only way to find out was to keep pushing. "I'm not leaving you, so deal."

"Damn it, Max! I…" he bit his tongue, bringing what would've been a lengthy confession to a quick halt. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration.

Max stood up and challenged him through the door's window. "You _what_, Alec? Huh? You'd rather brood in there alone? You hate me now and wish I'd just go away? Talk to me!"

He looked up at her tiredly. "I'm barely holdin' it together here, Maxie, okay? And yeah, I'd rather be alone than have you see me like this."

"See you like what? Being human? Cause I don't see anything wrong with that, Alec."

He shook his head dejectedly at the ground. "You still don't understand, do you? I tried to explain it to you that night at Crash, but like I said back then, you don't get it cause you weren't there."

"So explain it to me again."

"Short version? I'm a screw up, Max. The only thing I was ever good at was fighting, and I have our enhanced DNA to thank for that. I failed my first mission, failed the only girl I ever loved, failed to conform to Manticore's rules and regulations… I mean hell, I even failed White's little test of getting three barcodes cause I couldn't kill another X5. I'm no soldier. Never was. They demoted me to breeding partner because they didn't know what else to do with me, and you know how well _that_ turned out."

"Alec, I…"

His piercing green eyes connect with hers. "Don't. Renfro's right. All I'm good for is spare parts and… well, you know what _she_ wants from me. I've known it for years. Manticore doesn't waste time telling you if you're useless or not. I just didn't wanna believe it. Let her have me and be done with it. I'll stay here till it's over and then wake up and hit the road."

"So that's it then? You're just gonna leave? Where would you go?"

"I dunno. But I'll only be in your way if I stay."

Max could feel anger bubbling just below the surface, though she couldn't tell if it was directed towards Alec, Renfro, or herself. "What happened to being a fighter, huh?"

His eyes fell to where his arms rested on his knees. "I'm tired, Max. And I've got nothin' left to fight for."

Enough was enough, Max decided. He had to pull it together or he was going to die right in front of her. Maybe not physically, but the cocky and confident Alec she knew would be gone. She pulled hard against the cell door's handle but it wouldn't budge. Alec flinched at her attempt nonetheless.

"Open the door, Alec," she ordered.

"No. Get outta here, Max. I just wanna be left alone."

"Well too damned bad cause I'm not going anywhere so you might as well let me in."

Alec tightened his grip around his knees and looked away; a clear indication that he wasn't going to let that final wall down anytime soon. She sighed, searching for an alternate approach.

"Look, you've been through hell, Alec. No one can deny that. But no matter what they put you through, you never let them break you. _That _is what makes you strong. That's what proves you aren't a failure. In fact, I'd say you were Manticore's only real success."

"What are you talkin' about?" he asked warily, eyes darting up at her in confusion.

"Why do you think Renfro wants you so badly? If you were really a screw up, she'd have ordered you put down years ago. Instead, she's been doing everything in her power to keep you alive and under her thumb. She sees your potential and wants to exploit it. Now you're telling me after all this, you're just gonna sit back and let her manipulate you into doing exactly what she wants?"

"What do you suggest I do then, huh?"

Max could hear the flicker of anger in _his_ voice now too. Good. The fire inside him wasn't quite dead yet then.

"I want you to do what you do best. End this little soap opera of yours and _fight._"

"How? You've got me tied down to a damn cot out there! Besides, without Renfro I'm as good as dead, and we both know she's not leavin' till she gets what she wants."

"I believe in you, Alec. You're stronger than you give yourself credit for. I think you can pull through this, _without_ Renfro's help. Come back with me, we'll send her away, and you'll get through this like you always do. What do you say?"

Alec subtly wiped his cheek on his shoulder, drying tears he hadn't realized were falling, and then Max heard the heavy metal door unlock between them. She shoved it open and held out a hand to pull Alec to his feet. "Let's go tell Renfro her services are no longer required."

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

When Alec came to, he was hit with a fierce mixture of pain and pleasure. His body was on fire and every muscle he possessed immediately coiled. It was hard to breathe and he felt incredibly lightheaded.

Another strong pulse of pleasure shot through him hard enough to make his back arch off the table as if he'd been shocked by a defibrillator machine. He gasped, overwhelmed by the sudden bombardment of so many warring sensations. What was happening to him?

Then he felt her hands on him.

His heart stopped in his chest and everything around him moved in slow motion. He tilted his head back to see Max's eyes snap open as she came out of their connection, watched her eyes widen in anger and hatred, and saw her lunge forward across his body.

He turned his head to the side to protect his neck, then felt the cuff around his right wrist give. Max had broken the strap. As soon as her body cleared away from his, he shot upright, wrapped his fingers in a crushing grip around Renfro's fragile neck, and snapped the bones like a twig. She was dead before she realized he had even woken up.

The old woman's body crumpled over his, her surprised eyes staring up at him, mouth gaping open in fear. Alec lurched to the side and immediately threw up on the floor. Then the weight of the dead body fell away as Renfro's limp limbs allowed gravity to take control and unimaginable pain flooded Alec's system, instantly overloading it.

He cried out in agony, then slumped back down against the cot, unconscious once more.

TBC

I'm so so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up! It has been a busy month, but hopefully the new chapter wasn't disappointing and more to come as soon as I can get to it. Special thanks to Karebear119 for inspiring me to finish this chapter sooner rather than later!


	33. Redemption

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

"452! What the hell have you done?!" Lydecker shouted, staring at Alec's convulsing body in abject horror.

"I'm trying to save him!" she barked back, doing her best to keep hold of Alec's free arm as his muscles jerked like a sadistic puppeteer's marionette.

"_Save_ him?! You've as good as _killed_ him!"

Max snorted derisively. "Even after all these years, you still don't understand transgenics, do you, Deck."

The colonel threw his arms up in frustration and stormed from the room, writing Alec off as a lost cause. Max hoped like hell that it wasn't true.

Bradbury was bustling around the small exam room once again. He jabbed a muscle relaxant into the kid's thigh and, by the time Alec stilled, the doc had a bunch more ice packets ready to go. With Max's help, they situated Alec on his side in case he threw up again, then placed the ice packs around his head and body.

"If we can control the fever, he'll get through this, Max," Bradbury informed the worried transgenic. "As long as he chooses to keep fighting."

"He will," she stated with utter conviction. "That's what he does best." There was a sadness in her voice that told Bradbury there was more to her words than their basic meaning, but he didn't press for an explanation.

He listened to Alec's steadying heartbeat and then patted him gently on the shoulder. The kid was tough, no doubt about it.

Quickly approaching footsteps pulled Bradbury's attention towards the door. He tensed on reflex, prepared to do whatever was necessary to protect the unconscious form behind him, but the gallantry was superfluous.

Sam Carr stopped dead in the doorway, staring wide-eyed at the old woman's body sprawled on the floor.

"Wh-what just…? Is she…?"

"She's dead," Max confirmed quietly. "And she got off easy if you ask me."

"But what about Alec? Won't he…?"

"He's gonna be okay," she interrupted, smoothing Alec's sweaty hair back and away from his closed eyes. She sat down on the edge of the exam table next to Alec's hip and continued to hold his free hand.

Bradbury reached for the restraints on Alec's other wrist but Max stretched across the kid's prone body and latched onto the doctor's forearm. "Leave it," she ordered. "He's still battling the pain and if he wakes up disoriented, there's no tellin' how he's gonna react."

"We should know soon, one way or the other," the doctor stated. "If he's going to wake up, he'll be sore as hell, but he'll be free of the drug. Till then, we just need to keep him comfortable."

He draped a light sheet over Alec's waist, letting his hand linger on the kid's hip for a second or two. Not even _he_ was sure if the action was meant to give comfort or draw it, but he had to fight down the urge to kiss Alec on the forehead like a parent would do to a child they just tucked in for the night. He gave Max a warm smile and then stepped away.

"I'm gonna go wash up and rest for a bit. Call me when he stirs."

Max nodded. "Thank you, for all of this."

Bradbury nodded back. "I only wish I had done something sooner."

The man looked completely exhausted as he stumbled his way out of the room, but he appeared to be calm and at peace for the first time since she had met him. She knew for a fact then that Alec was going to be just fine.

When she turned back, Sam was listening to Alec's heartbeat but his eyes were on her. "You should get some rest too, Max. I can stay with him."

"I don't sleep. Besides, I wanna be here when he wakes up. You know, just in case."

"That could be a while. He's been through a lot and his body needs time to heal."

"Doesn't matter. I'm staying right here, as long as it takes."

Sam moved the stethoscope to Alec's back and listened to his lungs. "I hate to kick you when you're down, Max, but even if these drugs really are out of his system, he's still got the visions to contend with. I think I'm right in assuming he won't be happy if he has to stay blindfolded the rest of his life."

"I'm working on that. Speaking of, can I use your phone?"

"It's in the office," Sam replied, pointing her in the right direction.

Max glanced back down at Alec, worrying her lip a bit. Sam rested a hand on her shoulder.

"He'll be okay, Max. I won't leave his side till you get back. I swear."

She nodded. "I'll be back in five. Call me if there's any change."

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Three hours later, and Max was still silently sitting vigil over her fallen friend. Alec had stirred a few times but remained unconscious. She knew he needed the rest, but she selfishly hoped he'd wake up soon. Everyone else went to sleep when the first two hours passed with no change and she was starting to go stir crazy without a distraction.

It was another hour and twenty minutes before the frown lines appeared on Alec's forehead and a pained groan rumbled up through his throat. He turned his face into the table as if the dim lights were searing through his eyelids.

"Alec?" Max asked tentatively, afraid to get her hopes up once again after the previous false alarms.

Alec shifted slightly, then gasped as his tortured muscles protested the action. Someone had better damned well gotten the license plates of the convoy that clearly ran over him recently or there was gonna be hell to pay.

Everything from his toes to his head ached, maybe even his hair, though it was hard to pinpoint what didn't hurt through the blazing fire coursing through his body. It felt like he had gone through all of Manticore's strenuous trainings in one day without ever having worked out previously in his life.

He tried to crack his eyes open and get a lock on his location, but his brain was pulsing to the beat of his heart and he was pretty sure his eyes would melt from his skull if they were subjected to the overhead lights. Maybe if he just rolled over he could alleviate some of the pain in his hip and shoulder at the very least.

Alec started to twist around but firm hands prevented him from getting far. His frown deepened. Maybe he went on an all night bender and took some chick home with him. That would explain the migraine at least.

He tried to push the clingy hands away but his wrist was stopped short and the sounds of rattling chains pierced through the fog that had settled in his mind. He instantly tensed.

No one would ever accuse Alec of being a prude, but he was pretty sure he wouldn't have allowed himself to be handcuffed to the bed no matter how cute the kinky chick might've been last night. He spent too much of his life in restraints to find it a pleasurable experience.

Something was niggling at the back of his mind; an echo of fear he couldn't quite explain. Something wasn't right here. He tugged harder against the cuff and suddenly there was skin on skin contact. A hand was holding his arm down and his fight or flight instinct kicked in long before his memory did. He wasn't sure how or why, but he just knew he had to get away.

His other arm shot up and immense relief surged through his system when he realized it hadn't been properly restrained. His fingers latched around a small neck and the familiarity of the move was all it took to trigger his brain back into gear.

_Manticore, experiments, drugs, Renfro's hands… No no no no no!_ His arm tensed, readying itself to snap the old woman's neck, but wait… Hadn't he done that already? Or had it just been a dream?

Max was caught off guard when a completely docile Alec suddenly had her by the throat and she knew what was coming next. She had to act fast or her body would be lying on top of Renfro's in seconds.

She quickly reached forward and dug her thumb into Alec's bullet wound. He immediately released her and cried out in pain. His body was in shock long enough for her to gain control of his free arm again and secure it behind his back. She knew it would be hell on his injured shoulder, but he hadn't left her with much choice.

The sooner she could get through to him, the sooner she could let him go. "Alec! Hey! Listen to me!"

Being forced into a compromising position heightened Alec's need to get away and he struggled harder, ignoring how his damaged body screamed at him to relent. If he did, Renfro would win.

"Alec! Focus, damn it! Stop fighting me or you'll dislocate your arm!"

That voice… Alec paused when it didn't fit into the scenario his mind had built around him. If only he could remember what was happening. He jerked against the restricting hands again in frustration.

"Submit, 494!" Max barked, hoping he would fall back on Manticore orders instinctively.

Migraine be damned. He had to see what was going on. Alec forced his eyes open and twisted his neck to see over his restrained shoulder. "M-Max…?" he gasped out as his head and arm throbbed uncomfortably.

Max sighed in relief and visibly relaxed. "Yes, you big idiot. Now calm down before you hurt yourself even worse."

"What happened?" His voice was gravelly and his throat felt like he had swallowed sandpaper.

Max hedged around the question. "What do you remember?"

"I…" He glanced around the room, piecing bits of his memory back together. "You were in my head. We agreed to send Renfro away, and then…" Alec started breathing faster, his heart hammering in his chest. "Max, she…!"

"It's okay, Alec. We got back just in time. She didn't get what she wanted."

"I… I killed her." His voice was full of disbelief and Max couldn't tell if he was more relieved or horrified by what he had done.

"You're safe now," she replied simply. "She can never hurt you again. That's all that matters." Max slowly eased her grip on Alec's arm once he stilled.

Bradbury appeared in the doorway, apparently having heard the shouting and cries of pain. "Max?" he asked quietly. She held up a hand, keeping the man at bay until she knew Alec was fully coherent.

Alec swallowed convulsively against the lump that was quickly rising in the back of his throat again. The walls were closing in on him and the room was starting to spin. He tugged against the offensive cuff one more time.

"Take it off. Please, Max. Just take it off." He felt trapped. Confined. He just wanted to get up and pace his nerves away. He needed a minute to clear his head and he couldn't do that while restrained with people staring down at him in pity. It felt too much like Manticore.

"I will, Alec, but you've gotta calm down."

"He's hyperventilating, Max," Bradbury stated from his position in the doorway. He didn't have to be up close to see that Alec was panting and drawing in too much air. If he didn't get it under control soon, he would pass out again.

"Look at me, Alec," Max demanded, then waited for those wide green eyes to lock with hers. She carefully maneuvered his trapped arm over his hip and up across his chest where she could still restrain him but the hold would be less painful on his shoulder.

He winced at the jostling but didn't make a sound. He was sure he already appeared weak and pathetic in her eyes and didn't want her opinion of him to drop any lower.

Max noticed the fresh blood dripping down his bicep and the guilt piled heavier on her shoulders. She had reopened the bullet wound and caused him more pain. Couldn't he do anything the easy way?

"I'm gonna let go but you have to stay still, okay? At least until Bradbury gives you the all clear." Much to Max's relief, she felt Alec unclench his muscles one by one beneath her weight and, true to her word, she released him.

Bradbury gave him another minute to compose himself and get his breathing back under control before inching forward. He paused when Alec subconsciously pulled the sheet higher over his chest like a security blanket.

The kid had been violated in the worst ways possible over the past few days and Bradbury could sympathize with him not wanting to be poked and prodded at by another doctor. He slowly extended his hands out to his sides to show he meant Alec no harm.

"It's alright. I just want to tend to your shoulder. Will you let me?"

Alec stared at him warily for a second, then nodded. He didn't relax his grip on the sheet, but he didn't flinch away when Bradbury's gloved hands took hold of his arm either.

The doctor kept his ministrations as gentle as possible and Alec avoided making eye contact with him, preferring to stare down at the sheet instead. Bradbury didn't comment on it, but he did try to engage the young transgenic in conversation to take his mind off the pain a bit.

"How's the head?"

It took Alec a moment to realize Bradbury was talking to him. "Huh? Oh, it's fine."

"That means it's an eleven out of ten on the pain scale, in Alec speak," Max clarified with a huff.

Alec shot her a quick glare but then dropped his gaze once more. He didn't have the energy to fabricate what would clearly have to be an elaborate lie. It wasn't like they would actually believe him anyway.

Bradbury sighed. "I can't give you any of the good stuff right now, but I could give you _something_ for the…"

"I said I'm fine," Alec growled, but then his breath caught in his throat on a particularly deep prod from Bradbury's alcoholic swab.

"Sorry. Almost done." The doc knew the kid had to be hurting, but he also knew Alec wouldn't admit to it if his life depended on it. He was done with appearing weak. More than that, he had no intentions of letting anyone shoot him up with unknown drugs again.

"Is it really over?" Alec asked, barely above a whisper as if he were afraid of jinxing the answer.

"It's over, kiddo," Bradbury verified. "The drugs have passed, and your fever is finally relenting. You beat it."

Alec slumped back down on the cot in relief and exhaustion. He had survived it. Maybe he wasn't a pathetic failure after all. He clung to that hope as he gave in to his body's demand for rest.

TBC

Sorry again for the wait everyone! I've been really busy lately, but I hope it wasn't too disappointing. More to come as soon as I can write it. Thank you for sticking with me, and please review!


	34. Being Human

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Bradbury and Max stood silently over Alec for a minute, both content to just watch him sleep in peace. Max couldn't remember the last time she had seen him without pain lines on his face. Even when she went to get him at his apartment before all this started, he had been suffering from a migraine, and that seemed so long ago now.

She bit her lip, tears prickling at her eyes. She reached out to stroke his hair, but thought better of it and pulled back. Bradbury laid a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently.

"You did this for him, Max," Bradbury stated softly. "You took the pain away. Don't beat yourself up for that."

"I betrayed his trust."

"You did what you had to do. He wouldn't have survived otherwise and we all know it."

"Not all of us," she mumbled, pulling the sheet a bit higher on Alec's chest simply to give her hands something to do.

"Maybe it's better that way. Ignorance is bliss after all. He doesn't need to know, Max. As far as he's concerned, he beat the drugs himself and he's healing. That's all that matters." A long silence passed between them before Bradbury spoke again. "What should I do with this?"

He held up Renfro's specimen container, which was clearly far from empty.

"Get rid of it," Max replied flatly, refusing to look at it, or the doctor.

Bradbury nodded. "For what it's worth, I'm sure he'd be relieved to know it was you and not…"

"Shut up. Just… Shut up." Max pulled away from Bradbury's comforting grasp but she didn't go far, unwilling to stray from Alec's side.

Bradbury stepped closer to her and kept his voice down. "No one else needs to know, Max. I won't say anything if you don't."

"Please leave. I- I need some time to think."

"Alright. I'll be in the other room if you need me." Bradbury left without another word.

Max sat down in one of the uncomfortable looking chairs next to Alec's cot and replayed the last few days in her head. She knew there hadn't been any other choice, but that didn't stop the tears from sliding down her cheeks.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Alec drifted in and out of consciousness over the next two days while his body struggled to heal itself. Max, Bradbury, and Sam took turns watching over him as he rested while the others occupied their time with playing cards at the kitchen table.

When Bradbury came in to change the bandage on Alec's shoulder halfway through the third day, he was happily surprised to find the bullet wound was starting to turn into scar tissue. The kid was finally on the mend.

The ex-Manticore doctor began tugging the sheet down to check the deep bruising on the kid's chest but found a bone-crushing grip latched onto his forearm. Glancing up, his eyes locked with slightly clouded but determined green eyes.

"Welcome back, buddy," Bradbury said with a kind smile, stilling his movements and giving Alec time to orient himself. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise."

As soon as Alec's eyes became more alert, he released the doctor and looked away, feeling a bit sheepish. "Sorry," he rasped, knowing the man would have a decent hand-shaped bruise on his arm within the next few minutes.

Bradbury shrugged it off. "Don't worry about it. Here. Drink this, slowly." He handed Alec a small cup of water. "I wanted to put you on an IV drip to keep you hydrated but Max said you guys could go without water for an impressive length of time. Still, if you hadn't woken up within the next day or so, I would've had to pull medical rank on her."

He winked at Alec who chuckled lightly. "Bet _that_ woulda gone over well."

"I have to admit I'm glad we didn't get the chance to find out. Anyway, I was just checking on your progress. You're healing quite nicely now."

Alec groaned as he raised himself up onto his right elbow. "I'll take your word for it." He tried to push himself up higher but faltered when his body let him know, in no uncertain terms, that moving was a bad idea.

Bradbury's hand shot out and latched onto Alec's shoulder when the color left his face. "Slow down there, big guy. Where do you think you're going?"

"I gotta go find Max."

"She had some errands to run but she should be here soon. In the meantime, lie back so I can check you over now that you're awake."

Alec opened his mouth to protest but Bradbury quickly cut him off.

"Max said you weren't allowed to even twitch a muscle until I gave you the all clear. It'll only take a minute, _if_ you cooperate. Otherwise I'll just sedate your ass for another week until all the bruising is gone."

Bradbury smirked at the glare his threat had earned him. "What's it gonna be, kiddo?"

Alec slumped back down on the cot with an annoyed sigh. The doctor took it as permission to continue.

He reached out again, slower this time so as to avoid alarming his patient, and lowered the sheet to Alec's navel, then began gently palpating the fading bruises on the kid's chest.

Alec watched every move the man's hands made as they slid across his torso in a clinical manner. It would've been almost hypnotic and calming if it hadn't reminded him of all the exams he had had to endure back at Manticore. Just the thought made his skin crawl and he quickly looked away.

Bradbury felt Alec tensing up beneath his hands and decided some light conversation might help distract him a bit.

"You had us all pretty worried, you know. You were out of it for just over two days. How do you feel?"

"Like I've been on this cot for about three weeks."

Bradbury winced in sympathy. "Little stiff?"

"Understatement." Alec grimaced as he raised his knees a bit, feeling his back crack in the process. "Where's the bod… Where's Renfro?"

"One of Max's errands," the doctor replied simply, trying to focus on his patient and not the memory of the woman's dead eyes staring blankly up at him as Max and Lydecker dragged her from the room.

Alec was trying not to think about Renfro either, though he was glad her body was no longer in the same room. He'd feel even better if he could just get on his feet for a while. "We good here?" he asked as soon as the doctor's hands left his skin.

"Not just yet," Bradbury replied, turning his back only long enough to grab an instrument from a nearby tray. When he turned back, he shined a small penlight into Alec's eyes who quickly squinted and turned his head away with a hiss of pain. "Headache still bad?" the doctor assumed.

"I can manage it," the kid grunted past clenched teeth.

Bradbury had to fight to keep his eyes from rolling. "Sure you can… What about the rest of the pain? How's the shoulder?"

"You tell me."

The doc carefully took hold of Alec's left wrist and elbow, lifting the limb and guiding his joint through a series of rotations to check its mobility. Alec flinched occasionally as Bradbury manipulated his arm into uncomfortable extremes but was relieved to find the joint hadn't suffered any permanent damage.

"I suppose it could've been worse..."

"Yeah, sure. At least it's still attached," Alec muttered sarcastically.

"There is that. I know it'll be hard for you, but try not to strain your deltoid muscles too much while the bone is still healing."

"Easier said than done, especially if White catches wind of where we are."

"You're in no condition for a fight, son."

"I won't go looking for one, but if it comes knockin', I ain't gonna sit it out either."

"I suppose that's fair. In the meantime, no heavy lifting."

"Wasn't plannin' on it."

"Good. What about your ribs? I can put some ice on them if they're giving you trouble breathing."

"Nah. They're fine."

"And what about your head? Are you feeling dizzy or…?"

"Doc, no offense, but we could play twenty questions all day and still only cover about half of my injuries, so suffice it to say I'm exhausted and sore as hell but eager to get off this damn table."

Bradbury had to chuckle at that. "Fair enough. I always say the best medicine for aches and pains is a nice hot shower. And no offense to you either, but it couldn't hurt to use some soap. It smells like a locker room and a sewer went on a date in here. You should burn those jeans while you're at it."

Alec's face scrunched up in disgust when he realized he was still caked in sewage from the waist down and the smell offended his senses every time he shifted. "No argument here."

"Alright. You ready to try and get up?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"On three then." Bradbury counted down, then helped Alec slowly ease himself into a sitting position, his bad arm tucked against his bruised midsection.

The return to vertical after so many days of lying down made his head spin but the doctor kept a tight arm around his shoulders, steadying him until the world came back into focus.

"Still with me?" Bradbury checked, ducking his head a bit to see Alec's bowed face.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm good." After another minute or two, Alec tossed the sheet off his legs and was relieved to find that someone had refastened his jeans for him at some point.

_Finally, a little modesty._

"Just take it slow, and lean your weight on me. The bathroom is right around the corner."

It was slow going, but when Alec finally stumbled his way to the bathroom door, he stopped and disentangled himself from Bradbury. "I can take it from here, thanks."

"You sure?"

In all honesty, he wasn't sure, but he knew for a fact that he couldn't take one more minute of having someone hovering around him, waiting for him to falter. He needed privacy, damn it. "I'll be fine."

Bradbury nodded, understanding the kid's desire to be alone. "Okay. But if you start to feel dizzy or see black spots in your vision, you call me, understood?"

"Yes, sir," Alec smirked with a mock salute.

"I'll scrounge up some clothes for when you get out. Don't push yourself too hard yet. Even transgenics don't always heal overnight."

"You'd be surprised what we can do, doc." With that, Alec turned and walked into the bathroom, closing- and _locking_- the door behind him rather pointedly.

Bradbury got the message. He shook his head at the kid's stubbornness and hoped for all their sakes that there wouldn't be any mishaps.

DA-DA-DA-DA-DA

Showers were nothing to get excited about back at Manticore. They were usually ice cold and lasted about five minutes before the water was shut off on them in true military fashion. It was more a necessary evil than a privilege.

But this… This was as close to Heaven on Earth as Alec had ever been. Sure, it hurt like hell to have the scalding water pounding down on his injured body, but it also helped to wash away the memories of the past week.

He watched as the blood and muck swirled around the drain before disappearing and was relieved when the water finally turned clear again. He washed away the ghostly sensation of hands on his skin, and the heavy water pressure eased some of the aches from his stiff and torn muscles.

Hell, he almost felt human.

But he wasn't human. The yellowish bruises where deep purple ones had been only hours ago were evidence of that. Alec knew he wasn't a human. He was a piece of meat, and nothing more. Fodder for curious scientists, and insanely lonely women; just a used and discarded side of beef.

Alec's head swam as all the emotions he had been keeping bottled up erupted out of him and it took all his strength not to punch his fist through the pristine ceramic wall in front of him. Instead, he leaned his forearm against it and rested his forehead on the freshly cleaned skin.

He shook silently as tears mixed with the water spraying down his neck and back, disappearing down the drain with the blood and muck.

TBC

Please keep those supportive reviews coming! They really help to inspire me! Thank you all for reading as always!


	35. Work to Do

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Alec stayed under the hot spray until he started to feel more like himself again. His minor meltdown turned out to be very cathartic, and while he was still weary and struggling with internal and external pains, he managed to scrape together enough strength to take back control of his emotions.

He was a soldier, damn it. He was done with being weak. Not a victim, but a survivor.

He turned off the water and dried his face before wrapping the towel securely around his waist and slowly making his way over to the mirror. Alec swiped his hand across the glass to clear away the condensation created by the steam, then gave himself a calculating once-over.

His eyes were red-rimmed, but he could pass that off as a side effect of exhaustion. The bruises and cuts on his body were well on their way to healing, and in another week or so, they would be gone entirely, leaving no traces behind of any physical damage. It would be as if none of it had ever happened.

But the memories… They wouldn't fade as easily. That was his cross to bear though. He had one mantra that got him through years of hell and it was simple; _I'm always okay._ If he said it enough, he'd actually start to believe it, and then everyone else would believe it too.

A knock on the door announced the arrival of his fresh clothes. He reached over and twisted the handle, popping the lock. When the door swung open, he was surprised to find Max standing there, holding a pile of articles from Logan's wardrobe.

Her eyes flickered over his towel-clad body before resolutely locking with his gaze, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. "I uh… Sorry I'm late. I was hoping to be back before you woke up again."

"You didn't miss much," he replied, accepting the hoodie and jeans gratefully. "Where'd you get these?"

"Stopped by Logan's place on my way back."

Alec frowned at her. "That was risky, Max. The only reason White and his cronies haven't torched it yet is because they're expecting one of us to double back. It's bait."

"I'm not an idiot, Alec. I scouted the place first and took Logan's tunnel in. Plus, I just… I wanted to see the place again."

"Getting sentimental in your old age, huh, Maxie?" he chuckled, pulling the sweatshirt over his head.

Max looked away. "Whatever. Finish up in here. We need to talk. Meet me in Sam's office when you're ready."

He rolled his eyes at her authoritative tone. "Whatever you say, boss. I'll be out in a minute."

Fifty-eight seconds later, he strode- fully clothed and wet hair tousled- out of the bathroom and down the hall to Sam's office. "Alright, let's hear it. What did you…?" He froze in the doorway, his voice trailing off as the air caught in his lungs.

Sitting on the other side of the room across from Max was a face he recognized all too well. "What the hell is _she_ doing here?" he demanded, looking directly at Max for an explanation.

"Great to see you again too, Alec," huffed Mia with a pout. Sure, last time they had been in the same room, Alec had gotten his ass handed to him while playing Monti Cora under Mia's mind controlling influence, but she didn't think it was enough to warrant _that_ kind of negative welcome.

Alec gritted his teeth. This wasn't a conversation he wanted to share with Lydecker or Logan, both of whom were staring at him and looking uncomfortable.

"Max, can I see you in the hall, please?"

Without waiting for a response, he backed out of the doorway. It wasn't long before she appeared at his side and he rounded on her.

"_This_ was your big plan?! You realize she was the one who screwed with my head in the first place, right? What makes you think I want her messin' around up there again?"

"Oh, I dunno, Alec… Maybe the fact that we have no other options here?" she hissed back. "I don't like it either, but she's the best chance we've got and she owes us."

"You think?!" he practically shouted, no longer caring if all of Seattle heard him at this point. "She could've put me back on White's radar that night without the slightest concern for the consequences, and all to save that fruitcake boyfriend of hers. She manipulated all of us, Max!"

"Hey! Calm down!" Max lowered her voice, acknowledging the fact that everyone else could hear their conversation pretty clearly. "I know what she did, but I also know she did it for the right reasons. Unless you're considering a lobotomy or something, this is the only noninvasive cure I could come up with."

"Noninvasive my ass. I don't want her rooting around in my mind, Max. Especially not after all this recent crap. It's none of her business."

"I'm not here to violate your privacy, Alec," Mia stated calmly from the doorway, making Alec jump and whirl around to face her. "I just wanna help. After what you guys did for me and Dougie, it's the least I can do."

Alec sighed, running a hand agitatedly through his damp hair, making it stick up in all directions. "We're not talkin' simple mind games here. This is psychic suppression. How do we know it's even gonna work?"

"Because it worked once before," Lydecker declared, joining Mia in the doorway. "It worked on your twin, Ben."

Alec felt as though the walls were closing in on him. The vertigo effect was disorienting, making his stomach clench and his throat tighten. He stumbled sideways a half step, coming to rest up against the wall and leaning heavily on it. "What?"

The colonel sighed. "493 started getting the visions a few weeks before the '09 escape."

"Bullshit," Max growled. "He would've said something."

"He did. We didn't realize what was happening back then. He kept blabbering about this Blue Lady who was watching over you kids from above."

"Those were just stories. He made it up as he went."

"That's what we thought at first too. But he described her in such detail that he had me wondering. We kept an eye on him, and when he climbed up to the roof after lights out with a handful of bloody teeth from the rest of you kids, we knew we had to act."

"So you put him through psy-ops too," Alec surmised, starting to feel nauseous.

Lydecker nodded. "We didn't have a choice. He was putting the whole program at risk. After a few hours of testing, we were able to pinpoint the area of the brain that was responsible for his 'episodes' and we were able to make the Blue Lady go away. The very next night, you kids broke out."

"He thought she abandoned him," Max spat, torn between shock and fury. "He spent the next ten years trying to find her."

"We spent a few years trying to find her as well, once we realized who she really was."

"What are you talkin' about?"

"He had seen her image in his head, Max, long before he got a hold of that photo of the Virgin Mary. He thought it was a sign. But what he was really seeing was a vision of your escape. He was seeing…"

Max gasped, the puzzle pieces finally fitting together. "Hannah Sukova. The woman who gave me a ride and took me in when I was nine."

"We had no idea, Max. We thought he was a failed experiment. At the time, we hadn't found the files on Sandeman's psychic connection studies so we attempted to fix what we saw as being broken. Since we didn't know what we were dealing with, the tests most likely did more harm than good."

"You just assumed he was nuts and then figured it ran in the family, is that it?" Alec snarled.

"We did the best we could with what we had at the time. We sent you through every psy-ops test we could think of, trying to get answers and to be sure his psychosis wasn't hereditary but all your results came back normal. Of course, only recently did we figure out it was because you hadn't been exposed to Max at that age and the connection hadn't been triggered yet."

"So… What you're sayin' is that now that it _has_ been triggered, I could end up like my twin?"

If Alec hadn't been leaning so heavily against the wall, he would've ended up on the floor. His legs were shaking terribly beneath his weight and all the blood drained from his face, making the room spin faster around him.

"It's possible, yes."

"No, Alec," Max stated defiantly, glaring at Lydecker. "It's not gonna happen. You're not Ben."

"You don't know that. One too many visions and I could just snap like he did and…"

"He didn't just _snap_, Alec. He had a lot of deep-seated issues, ever since we were kids. He let his fear control him, and no one was there to bring him back from the edge when he needed it. I won't make the same mistake twice. I promise."

Alec scoffed. "Let's be practical here, Max. You can't watch over me twenty-four/seven for the rest of my life."

"Maybe not, but if Mia succeeds, I won't need to."

"Psychic coercion is not an exact science, Max. What if she just makes things worse?"

"Glass half empty much? You've just gotta have some faith, Alec."

He let out an incredulous laugh, bordering on hysteria. "In case you've forgotten, Maxie, faith is what got Ben _killed_."

"Alec, please. It's the only choice we've got."

Though he was still horribly pale, he managed to push himself off the wall and began pacing back and forth across the short length of the corridor. He just needed a minute to _think_…

"It doesn't really matter what I say, does it," he pressed, directing his question at Mia. "You could just change my mind or do it anyway and then make me forget."

"This isn't Manticore anymore, Alec," she responded. "I'm not taking orders this time, and I'm not gonna force you into doing something you don't wanna do. Like I said before, I'm here to help, but only if you want it."

Lydecker butted in once more, seeing that the young transgenic's resolve was starting to waver. "Look, son, Mia assisted in putting the mental barrier up for Ben. She knows what she's doing. She, uh… She's already done it to _you_ once before as well."

Alec paused in his pacing, staring daggers at the older man. "Come again?"

"It was more of a preventative measure than anything. We knew which area of Ben's brain was afflicted so we had Mia cordon it off as it were, just to be safe that you didn't suffer the same fate as 493. For all we know, it might be the only reason you didn't become an amateur dentist like your brother."

"I'm guessing this wall of yours wasn't meant to withstand level ten torture, was it?"

"Not particularly, no. I believe Renfro's plan was to chip away at it and allow your mind to adjust with time. But obviously, that's not how things went down. White may have blown the shit out of the makeshift wall with his C4 laser, but I feel confident that Mia can repair the damage, if not build up a whole new barrier from scratch."

"And what's in this for you?" he asked his old colonel, needing to know all the rules before he played the game.

"I know you see me as the bad guy here, but you're still one of my kids. I don't want to see you die needlessly if there's any way of preventing it."

"Uh huh… And if you happen to call in a favor somewhere down the line in return, so be it, right?"

"One day at a time, son. Let's get you better, then worry about what comes next."

"Easy for you to say," he grumbled back petulantly.

"I can do this, Alec," Mia piped in. "Let me help you."

Alec glanced over at Max who nodded at him encouragingly, then surrendered. "Fine. What do I have to do?"

"Just relax and let me in when it's time," Mia responded, trying to sound as confident as possible. "The rest is up to me." She held out a hand to him. "Come on, Sweetie. Let's get you comfortable."

After a moment of reluctant hesitation, Alec slowly reached out and took Mia's hand. She guided him back into Sam's office, followed closely by Max and Lydecker, then eased him onto the small couch by the back wall and instructed him to lie down.

His heart was pounding in his chest and his muscles were tense. This whole situation was bringing back horrible memories of his childhood that he would rather have forgotten. At least he wasn't strapped down this time though. Thank God for small favors…

Mia rested a hand over his chest and shook her head at him sadly. "You need to calm down, Hunny. If you fight me, you'll get the mother of all headaches."

Remembering the pain he felt when Max had forcibly entered his mind earlier, Alec decided he'd rather not experience it again if he could help it. He tried to force himself to relax, taking deeper breaths, in through the nose and out through pursed lips.

"That's it… In and out, nice and easy. I've got you," Mia cooed. His left hand was lying limply on his stomach and Mia clasped it, allowing him the option of squeezing back if it helped steady him.

His eyes kept darting around the room to all the fascinated onlookers. This couldn't possibly be more embarrassing.

Mia didn't have to be a psychic to know what was running through his mind at that moment. She glanced over her shoulder.

"Peepshow's over, folks. Everyone out. We've got work to do."

Logan and Sam were the first two out the door, followed closely by a reluctant Max. Alec stopped her before she turned the corner though.

"Max, wait. I want you to stay. You know, just in case things go sideways for whatever reason."

"You've got it, Alec." She smiled at him, looking relieved, then turned to Lydecker who had yet to move a muscle. "You, on the other hand, have overstayed your welcome. We've got him from here. You can go crawl back under whatever rock you came out of before all this started."

Lydecker shook his head and immediately began to protest. "Now is not the time for…"

"Get out," Alec barked, sitting back up and pointing towards the door. "I'm not gonna concede to this until I know you're far enough away that you can't meddle with the outcome."

The older man seemed to be warring with himself, but eventually gave in. "If that's the way you want it, I'll go. But you'll see me again, 494. Make no mistake." He turned to leave but paused when he reached Max's side. "Get him back on his feet. You two will need each other."

And with that, he left.

Bradbury took a step towards Alec. "I'd like to stay too, if I could."

Alec considered for a moment, then nodded, settling back down on the couch and laying his head on the armrest. "Let's get this over with."

TBC

Anyone still reading out there? Thanks as always for your reviews and support!


	36. And Then There Was Silence

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Reaching forward with her free hand, Mia gently turned Alec's face towards her, resting her fingers lightly against his cheek. "Close your eyes, Alec."

He did as she asked with a slow, steadying exhale. He could do this. He'd done it before, and when it was over, he wouldn't have to wear the damned bandana anymore. No more blindfolds, no more manhandling, no more head-splitting visions…

He'd be himself again.

He felt Mia's presence, gently pressing against his own, asking for permission to begin. Alec was ready for all this to end, he really was. But one gnawing thought refused to give him peace.

He pushed Mia back out of his mind and sat up again, eyes opening and seeking out Max. "Wait wait wait… Max, let's think about this."

Max huffed in exasperation, crouching down in front of her fellow X-5 so they were closer to eye level. "We already have, Alec. What's left to consider?"

"What if I can learn to _control_ the visions instead?"

"Alec…" She was already shaking her head but Alec plunged on, desperate to make her understand.

"Just hear me out, okay? Sandeman gave us this link for a reason, right? I mean, it could come in handy when White and his boys decide to take another shot at us. Maybe with a little practice, I could use them to keep you…" He trailed off, his cheeks suddenly adopting a soft rosy hue.

"What?" Max prodded. "Keep me _safe_? Is that where you're going with this?"

Alec looked away.

Max sighed, then slid onto the couch by 494's side, placing a hand gently on his knee. "Alec, listen to me. After all these years of lying low, I'm pretty good at staying off the radar. I don't need a watch dog, and I definitely don't need you torturing yourself to protect me, okay?"

"I know you don't need a babysitter, Max, but…"

"These visions are gonna kill you if they continue, don't you get that? Let Mia put the wall back up. You've more than earned your R&R, soldier."

Alec dropped his gaze to his knees. How was it possible that after everything they had been through, Max still didn't understand?

He wasn't afraid of pain; it was a constant companion in his life. He wasn't afraid of Manticore anymore either; what could they do to him that they hadn't already?

No. What he really feared was being completely and utterly alone.

_With_ the connection, he could prove himself useful. He could fight the good fight and watch Max's back. But without it, he would go back to always being in the way; a nuisance Max could hardly stand to be around.

He couldn't go back to that after everything they'd been through. He _wouldn't._

"Give us a minute, guys," Max asked quietly, then waited for Mia and Bradbury to exit the room. "Talk to me, Alec. What is this _really_ about?"

He stood up and quickly put distance between himself and Max. "Nothin'. Forget I said anything. I don't know where my head's at these days."

"Yet another reason to let Mia do her thing."

"No." He answered so abruptly and so confidently that it actually made Max pause.

"…No? What do you mean 'no'?"

"I mean I can't do this, Max. I can't…" _let you go._

Alec shook his head with a hollow bark of laughter at how dependent he had become now that he was free. Back at Manticore, they gave him orders and he obeyed. He rarely second guessed their rules, and he hardly ever stepped out of line. Things were so much simpler then.

He had been his own rock- his own island of solitude. He didn't need anyone else, not even a unit to fight by his side. He was trained for solo missions and he was good at them. When had all that changed?

When had he become so weak that he'd prefer agonizing pain over being alone? Max thrived in the real world, growing into a strong, independent woman everyone looked up to and saw as a leader. And she had only been a nine-year-old girl when her bare feet had first touched the snow-covered land of freedom.

But Alec? He was educated in the ways of the world and deployed as an adult, and yet he felt like cowering in a corner right now, not just bent but broken by the weight of free choice. Life was so much easier when he didn't have to think for himself.

"Is this because she's psy-ops?" Max guessed, trying to understand what had put her fellow X-5 on the defensive.

"It has nothing to do with that."

"Well what then?"

"I… I just… Damn it, Max. Don't make me try to explain this."

Alec felt like he was on the verge of panicking again and it made him sick. He angrily brushed away a tear that had somehow escaped his defenses and began pacing the length of the room.

Max wasn't about to let him off that easily though. She quickly rose to her feet and pursued him, standing directly in his path and forcing him to draw up short. He turned his back to her, hands threaded behind his head as he tried to get himself under control again.

"Hey. Look at me."

She gripped his shoulder from behind and spun him around, then drew back at the lost and desperate expression on his face. Even worse was the bolt of emotional pain that flooded through their connection, knocking the breath from her lungs and leaving her temporarily stunned.

"Don't make me let you go, Max," he whispered, no longer bothering to stem the flow of tears that made their way down his flushed cheeks, his gold-flecked green eyes more pronounced than ever.

To say it broke Max's heart would be the understatement of the century.

She forced her body to move again, striding forward and wrapping her arms around Alec tightly enough to strain his bruised ribs. He let out a soft grunt but made no move to break her hold.

"I'm not going anywhere, Alec. With or without the connection, you're part of my unit now. My _family_. Even if you _are_ a total pain in the ass, that'll never change."

Alec's arms dropped and his hands latched onto the back of Max's jacket like a lifeline. The relief hit him so hard it nearly knocked his knees out from under him, but Max's hold kept him up. _She_ was his stone now; his entire island.

"We'll get through this, Alec. Just like we always do," she stated confidently into his ear, feeling the warmth of his face against her own. "Besides," she continued, pulling back far enough to brush his tears away with her thumbs, "knowing their moves ahead of time kinda takes the sport out of the hunt, don'tcha think?"

She winked at him, and Alec laughed. It was a genuine sound that he realized he hadn't heard in a long time… Maybe not since Rachel. "Yeah, I guess." He wiped harder at his face using the sleeve of his sweatshirt, leaving a raw pinkish tinge to his eyes and cheeks.

"We've made it this far without the connection. We can do it again. Do you trust me?"

_With my life, with my soul… Maybe even with my heart._

"Well you haven't gotten us killed yet so that's gotta count for somethin', right?"

Max punched him playfully in the good shoulder. "Go sit your ass down before it lands on the floor, and let's get this bitch over with. Whatdoya say?"

Alec hesitated for a few more seconds, then finally nodded his consent. "Alright, fine. But can I take a piss first?"

"It's a free world, Alec. Bathroom's that way."

Alec flashed her one of his trademark smirks as they broke apart and she gave him a gentle shove in the right direction. It was a mere echo of the cockiness he usually exuded, but it was a start.

He closed the bathroom door behind himself and stood in front of the sink. Time to get his game face back on. He rolled up his sleeves, washed the drying salt tracks from his face, ran a hand through his unruly hair, and let out a rallying sigh.

He could do this. _For Max_.

When he walked back into Sam's office, Max was waiting for him on the couch and Mia and Bradbury had both returned. They were looking at him anxiously, wondering if he was really up for another mentally invasive procedure.

He clapped his hands together loudly. "Let's do this... Again."

Alec sank onto the plush couch next to Max, shoulders touching for support, and looked to Mia for instructions. She glanced at Max apologetically. "He needs to lay down, hunny."

"Roger that."

Everyone expected Max to jump up and get out of the way, but apparently she had other intentions.

She reached over, took hold of Alec's shoulders, and pulled him towards her, settling his back against her chest. Her right hand slid beyond his shoulder and down across his chest, taking his left hand in her own and resting them both on his taut stomach.

"Comfy?" she asked, his still damp hair soft and cool against her cheek.

"I uh… Yeah. Yeah, I'm good," he fumbled out, fighting the blush that threatened to redden his cheeks even more just from knowing his head was resting against _Max's_ 'pillows'instead of the couch's.

"Good." Max gave Alec's hand an approving squeeze as he settled in for the long haul.

Bradbury gaped at the two transgenics, wondering how much he could've possibly missed during those few minutes he had left the room. Mia, on the other hand, was beaming at them.

The doctor shook off his surprise and moved in behind Max, perching himself on the arm of the chair and giving her something more substantial to lean against.

"Alec, I'd like to monitor your vitals while Mia… does her thing," he finished lamely, not really sure what to call it. "If that's okay with you, of course."

"Knock yourself out, Doc," the young transgenic responded, trying not to jerk away as the man slid the cold end of his stethoscope beneath the collar of Alec's sweatshirt. Mia smiled kindly down at Alec, taking hold of his right hand with both of hers.

An unfamiliar sense of serenity flooded through Alec as the constant fear suddenly abated. It had plagued him for so long that he almost forgot what it felt like to not be afraid. He had been trained in the art of fight or flight his entire life, spending every minute in a state of hyperawareness that left him jittery and on edge.

Out in the field, it was a necessary evil. But here, in a neutral location with the knowledge that his biggest enemy was laying in a ditch somewhere, he could finally find peace and surrender to his fate.

For the first time in his life, Alec felt truly safe. He was surrounded by people who really cared about him, nestled in the arms of his closest friend, and they were all working together to fix what was broken in him- to make his pain go away.

He could do this. And no matter what the outcome of their little experiment turned out to be, he knew he'd be able to get through it as long as he didn't have to face it alone.

"Nice and easy now," Mia encouraged, resting one hand against the side of his face. "Just let me do all the work."

Alec let his eyes drift closed and allowed his body to relax. Trust wasn't something he gave easily, but he was willing to make an exception, just this once. He was too exhausted at this point to keep fighting anyway.

He felt Mia invade his thoughts for the second time that night and, with nothing more than a barely noticeable flinch at the discomfort, he gave her full access and was relieved to find the intrusion wasn't nearly as horrible as he remembered.

Mia carefully eased her way in a bit deeper until she found her targeted area and set to work. Giving in to the inevitable, Alec let his mind drift away until his exhaustion won out.

Max felt Alec go limp in her arms and looked up at Bradbury in alarm. He smiled down at her. "Heartbeat's slow and steady. I think he's finally getting some real sleep."

"He's okay, Max," Mia assured. "I may have over done it with the endorphins, but trust me, he's in a happy place right now. I'll try to keep him there till I'm done."

Max nodded, reflexively tightening her protective grip on Alec.

Mia worked as slowly as she could to make the process as painless as possible, placing one metaphorical brick in the wall at a time to allow Alec his much-needed rest. If only she had been strong enough to keep him relaxed when he was a child, it wouldn't have been such a nightmarish experience for him. But alas, she hadn't been much older than _he_ was at the time and she had still been learning how to control her abilities.

She kept a close eye on his face, watching for any signs of pain, and asked Bradbury to keep her apprised of his heart rate and pulse so she could regulate the amount of neurotransmitters flooding his system. It was an extra strain on her, but she had grown fond of Alec and knew he deserved her absolute best this time around.

Max had taken to humming softly, breaking the silence and helping to pass the time. To be honest, she was on the verge of falling asleep herself. Alec was draped over her like a heated blanket, and though she didn't tend to sleep much on a regular basis, these past few days had been more than a little taxing.

But she wasn't about to let her guard down until she knew Alec was in the clear. She owed him that much, and he was trusting her to watch his back. She played with his hair while he slept, curling it around her fingers before brushing the soft strands back out.

Bradbury moved the stethoscope around on Alec's chest and checked the pulse in his neck every once in a while but otherwise acted as a fly on the wall, simply watching and listening for any signs of distress. There were none.

Almost two hours later, Mia slumped forward, dropping her head into her hands with a weary groan. "It's done," she stated, and those two words were both comforting and heart wrenching for Max. She reached out tentatively to brush against Alec's mind but felt no resonating response.

Their mental connection was gone.

TBC

I want to apologize to all of you who have been waiting so patiently for a new chapter! When I put up my last post asking if anyone was still reading, I didn't get any responses so I figured the story was dead in the water and walked away from it. Then about two weeks ago, I went looking for a missing email in my spam folder and found over 150 messages from Fanfic I was completely unaware that I had! Needless to say, I've been working on this new chapter ever since to make up for my negligence.

Thank you all so much for your continued support and I hope this update was worth the wait! I'm finally wrapping this story up so Alec can get the happy ending he deserves. Happy Easter, everyone, and please review!


	37. The Final Chapter: Hellos, and Goodbyes

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Mia stood, a bit unsteadily, then gave Max a tired smile and gripped her shoulder gently in comfort. "He's going to be okay."

Max nodded back with a small smile of her own, then watched Mia head out of the room in search for a quiet place to crash for a few hours. Bradbury stayed a bit longer to make sure there weren't any latent side effects to worry about, then headed towards the waiting room to update the others on Alec's status.

Finally, the two transgenics were alone.

For so long, she had kept him at arm's length, afraid to risk opening her heart and letting someone else in. Becoming attached to anyone had led her to nothing but pain. Eva, Jace, Ben, Tinga, Brin, Hannah… She had loved them all, and lost them all in one way or another.

And because of that, she had relegated Alec to being a pain in the ass obstacle that always got in her way. She had never stopped to really look at him; to consider how truly beautiful the boy was, both inside and out.

Staring down at the man curled in her arms, Max saw Alec for the first time. _Really _saw him. His loyalty, his vulnerability hidden behind his devil-may-care bravado, his witty retorts that would make her laugh, his rare but secretly cherished hugs that gave her strength… And even though he pretended to be selfish to protect his ego, he was the most altruistic person she had ever met.

All this time he had been right in front of her, and she had been blind. And now? Now their connection was gone.

He shifted slightly in Max's arms, a grimace crossing his face. She began rubbing gentle circles over his chest, the fabric of his sweatshirt warm and soft beneath her hand. And when a weak groan of discomfort slipped past his lips, she resumed her soothing humming, continuing to do so even after he settled back down.

At first, she couldn't place the song. It was just a tune that somehow got stuck in her head. But looking down at Alec's pale and boyish face, the sudden realization was enough to make her throat constrict, drowning the tune in the depths of her soul.

Ben used to hum that song to their unit, back before the '09 escape. He had a beautiful voice, and the soft melody had the ability to chase away even the darkest of nightmares.

Almost every night, at least one of the children would jolt awake with a silent scream on their lips. Ben was always a light sleeper and he would easily pick up on the rustle of cheap blankets or a terrified gasp from across the room and start humming without saying a word. He wouldn't stop till the panting breaths evened back out again.

Max never slept much anyway. She refused to let the nightmares win. But Ben's soothing song helped lull her into a peaceful sense of security she rarely felt at that horrible institution. Zack may have been their leader, but Ben was their nurturer.

She missed that. _God_, how she missed that. And when Ben's neck snapped within her hand, that feeling of tranquility died with him. She hadn't realized it at the time, but she and Ben _had _been connected, at least to some extent, and losing him meant losing part of herself as well. All that was left was fear, guilt, and sorrow.

That's how Manticore almost broke her. She was so close to giving up and just letting them win. But then she met Alec, and that small spark in her stomach was rekindled.

Ben _wasn't_ dead. Not really. Max suddenly understood that he lived on- inside of her, and inside of Alec. She would protect them both this time around, no matter what the cost. Max leaned forward slowly and kissed Alec's temple as he slept.

A purposeful clearing of the throat from the doorway startled her and brought instant color to her cheeks. She glanced up to find Logan leaning against the doorframe.

"Sorry if I scared you. I was just coming to see if you guys needed anything."

Max looked away, suddenly feeling uncomfortable around the older man. "We're good, thanks."

"Good. I uh… I'm gonna take off then." He turned to leave and a jolt of panic rushed through Max's chest. If she let him walk away now, she may never see him again.

"Logan, wait! This isn't what you… I mean, we're just…"

He forced a small, placating smile onto his face. "I get it, Max. You don't have to explain."

"I'm not sure I could if I tried." She started tracing random shapes lightly across Alec's chest just to have something to do with her hands.

Logan watched the hypnotic movements to avoid looking at Max's face. "It's simple, really. He needs you right now, and you need him. To be honest, I kind of saw this coming weeks ago. I guess I was just hoping you wouldn't realize it too."

Max's hand stopped, then bunched the fabric into her fist, using it as an anchor and drawing enough strength from it to look Logan in the eyes. "For whatever it's worth, I'm sorry, Logan."

He shrugged it off. "Nothing to apologize for. That connection you guys share? It's not just in your genetics, Max. You get that, right?"

"Yeah, I do." There was no sense in lying about it at this point.

She could've blamed fate for it had she believed in such a thing, or even chalked it up to a sense of kinship they shared, but regardless of the reasoning, she still felt a physical need to be around Alec even without the mental connection linking them together.

"Maybe you should make sure _he_ knows that too, especially after everything he's been through lately."

"I will, when the idiot's coherent enough to remember." She let out a breathy laugh to try and keep the atmosphere light as long as possible. "So where are you gonna go?"

"Lydecker set up a safe house a few sectors over. Strangely enough, the Colonel says he actually wants to help get Eyes Only back up and running. Apparently, having 'eyes and ears on the enemy' is a 'good strategic move.' Who knew?"

This time, Max let out a genuine laugh. "He might be a little behind the eight ball, but it's nice to know whose side he's really on these days. Just, remember to take any advice he gives you with a grain of salt, considering his track record and all."

"I've learned my lesson, believe me. I'll take precautions. And I'll also leave a number for a burner phone with him in case you guys need anything." He takes a second to memorize Max's face before conceding defeat. "Take care of yourself, Max."

"You too."

And with a small wave of his hand, he was gone.

DA-DA-DA

Four hours later, an indiscernible grumble drew Max out of her deep thoughts. She glanced down to find beautiful green eyes squinting blearily up at her. "M-Max?"

The relief that hit her was strong enough to combat the sense of loss she had felt ever since Logan had left the doorway. Just hearing his voice again solidified her conviction that everything was going to be okay. She'd make sure of it.

"Mornin', Sunshine. How do you feel?"

Alec massaged his burning eyes with a thumb and index finger. "Like my brain was torn to shreds then stitched back up again like Frankenstein's monster. Other than that, I'm great. You?"

She smiled. "Never better."

He eased himself to a sitting position with a groan and a little help from Max. "So? Did it work?"

"You tell me. Does it feel any different?"

Alec took a moment to consider. "Huh. It sorta feels… I dunno, _quieter_ I suppose. Just me, myself, and I up there now."

"Which was the whole point, right? I mean, that's what we wanted?"

He fidgeted with his hands in his lap. "Yeah… Right."

Max frowned. "That wasn't very convincing. You okay?"

"Course. I guess it'll just take some time to get used to the emptiness again." He shook himself mentally and glanced up at Max. "But hey, no more agonizing visions, right? I can get on board with that."

Max wrapped an arm across his shoulders with a smirk, jostling him slightly. "Thought you might come around."

He leaned slightly into the hug before easing away again, far enough to look Max in the eye. His whole demeanor changed, and she knew things were about to get very serious. She didn't think she could handle that at this point. Her nerves were already dangerously frayed.

Nevertheless, Alec plunged forward into the choppy waters.

"Thank you, Max. I know how badly I screwed this one up, and like always, you put yourself through Hell to save my ass. I owe you a lot more than one this time around."

Max retracted her arm as if she'd been burned, suddenly becoming somber as her guilt finally caught up with her. "You don't owe me anything, Alec. You don't know the whole story."

"I know enough. If it weren't for you, Renfro would've… She would've gotten what she wanted. I don't think I could've lived with that."

Max stood and put some distance between herself and Alec, trying to escape the voices in her head screaming at her to come clean. "Alec, there's something I have to tell you."

He shook his head. "Max, I…"

"Just… Just listen for a sec, okay?"

Alec sighed, then nodded.

"When I brought you out of our connection to stop Renfro, I had no idea how far along she had gotten or what stopping her would do to you. When you snapped her neck, it sent you into convulsions. Bradbury tried to stop them with medications, but it became pretty clear there was only one way to save your life. We had to get the drugs out of your system. I… I didn't have a choice, Alec."

Max was close to tears again. She could only imagine how betrayed he must be feeling right now, to have convinced him he'd be strong enough to survive without any outside help only to pull the rug out from under him and have Max personally take over his abuse.

Alec stood slowly, seeming to realize how skittish Max was at the moment. He took a careful step towards her with his hands out to try and calm her. She turned away from him, burying her face in her hands. She couldn't break now. Alec would feel obligated to comfort her, and she didn't want that. It wouldn't be fair to him.

She'd keep her tears to herself until she told the whole story, then fall apart when Alec stormed out and left her to her misery.

"If I hadn't finished what she had started, you would've died then and there… on that cold, hard table. After everything you had done to survive, I couldn't let you go out like that."

Alec didn't say a word and Max felt the first tear break through her defenses and slide down her cheek.

"It was selfish of me, Alec. I couldn't let you go. I couldn't lose another member of my family, especially if there was something I could do to stop it. Maybe the right thing would've been to let you go with your dignity in tact, but I was weak, Alec. I'm so sorry for betraying you like that."

She heard footsteps moving towards the door followed by the sound of it being closed and what was left of her ragged heart shattered within her chest. He knew the truth now, and he left her behind. A sob slipped past her lips when she couldn't contain the pain any longer. "Please don't leave me," she whispered out in a nearly silent plea to the heavens, hoping it would somehow make it to Alec's ears.

A gentle hand suddenly gripped her shoulder and she held her breath.

"It's okay, Maxie." A warm breath ghosted out over her ear with those gentle words, forcing a shiver to race down her spine. "I'm not goin' anywhere," he continued, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and letting his hand trail down the soft expanse of her neck.

"You should hate me for what I've done," she stated brokenly.

He turned her back around slowly and she avoided eye contact at all costs. Just because he seemed to be giving her a free pass, it didn't mean she was willing to forgive herself as easily.

"Max, listen. I was conscious for some of it, and yeah, maybe I was a little pissed at the time, not to mention mortified, but it was only cause I wasn't thinkin' straight. I get it, Max, and I'm not mad. Like I said, you saved my life."

He ran his thumbs soothingly across her cheekbones, wiping away the tears that had started to flow freely. She locked her gaze on his perfect lips, needing to see the words spill from them directly so she knew his forgiveness wasn't a contrivance of her imagination.

"It wasn't exactly how I envisioned our first time, but if anyone here had to do it, I'm thankful it was you."

Her own lips trembled in response and she lunged forward into his strong arms, feeling a sense of redemption when his locked tightly around her in response- one hand on her lower back and the other cradling her head to his chest.

"I'm sorry you were put in that position," he said softly, rocking her gently to help ease her shaking. "I know that's not how you wanted things to go down."

Max pulled back slightly, finally looking up into his sparkling eyes incredulously. "_You're _sorry?! I basically molested you, Alec! How could you possibly forg…?"

"I _do_, Max. You hear me? I _do_ forgive you. I'm happy to be alive, and grateful as hell that you didn't give up on me or leave me to be Renfro's bitch for the rest of my life. I owe you everything, Maxie."

His thumb stroked gently over her cheek again.

"Breaking my ribs on the other hand? Totally unjustifiable. You're so going to pay for that." He winked at her, and she punched him playfully on the arm with a huff of laughter.

"Shut up, you ass."

He smirked. "Make me."

Never one to pass up a dare, she grabbed the nape of his neck and pulled him down, pressing her lips fiercely against his. After getting over his moment of shock, he surrendered completely, deepening the kiss once he was sure Max wouldn't pull away.

Her heart stuttered in her chest and a warmth settled in the pit of her stomach. Alec groaned softly- this time in pleasure rather than pain- clearly feeling the same intensity. A surge of electricity passed between the two of them, breaking them apart with simultaneous gasps.

Alec stumbled two feet sideways with one arm wrapped lightly around his stomach, coming to rest against the wall as his knees threatened to give out on him. He swallowed hard, panting at Max through bright red, puffy lips. "Did you feel that?"

She nodded, breathing just as heavily and unable to form words. Instead, she focused on that warm glow deep inside, letting the pressure build till it felt like she was going to explode.

When she reached out and touched Alec's shoulder, he did collapse onto his knees with a grunt and Max followed him down, using her own body to support his as the current intensified. He stared at her, wide-eyed, as he understood what was happening.

"Did we just…?"

"Break down that wall again? Yeah, I think we did." Max bit her lip nervously, only now giving thought to the consequences. "Hang tight. I'll go get Mia."

Alec grabbed her wrist as she started to stand. "No! Wait, Maxie. I'm okay. This feels…. It feels _right. _Like this is the way it was supposed to be the whole time."

Max smiled in relief. "Maybe it was."

The door suddenly burst open and a giant puppy lunged into the room with a big, goofy smile on his face. Both transgenics practically leapt out of their skins, Alec falling backwards onto his ass against the wall with a hand over his pounding heart. "Jesus…"

Joshua ran forward and pulled them both into a bone-breaking hug. "Alec all better now?"

"Well, I was…" Alec grunted back, wincing at the dull throb in his ribs as they creaked under the big guy's strength.

"Easy, Big Fella," Max chuckled.

"Sorry." Josh eased up a bit with a sheepish grin.

"So this is what it's like havin' kids, huh?" Alec asked Max, grateful the kiss hadn't progressed to anything more intense before the big guy busted in.

A high-pitched giggle from the doorway alerted them to Mia's presence.

"Sorry, guys. He just couldn't wait any longer."

The others slowly crowded around behind her in curiosity and Alec scratched the back of his neck, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with the whole situation. All eyes were on him, and he could certainly sympathize with animals in a zoo, being gawked at for entertainment's sake.

"So how are you feeling, Alec? Rested?" Mia questioned, feeling the perks of a few hours down time herself.

"Try confused."

She tilted her head at him in curiosity. "About what, sweetie?"

"We uh… We sort of screwed up your barrier again," Max supplied. "Only this time, we had a very different result."

Mia pursed her lips in thought, then her eyes widened in sudden realization. "Finally! You know, if you two had just made out weeks ago, you could've saved me a lot of time and energy with the repairs!"

Alec frowned up at her, looking more lost than before. "I-I don't understand. Where are the blinding visions? Where are the migraines? Even the pain I felt when I first woke up is gone."

"Those symptoms were a result of opening the connection when your body and mind weren't ready for it. White forced the link with his stupid machine, and that takes a pretty serious toll. But this… This is how Sandeman always planned for things to go. You two really are meant for each other, and this is the best proof you're gonna get."

"Father played match-maker," Joshua said with a big smile. "Max and Alec gettin' busy!"

Everyone in the doorway was smirking at them now and Alec massaged his eyes. "I take back everything I said earlier, Maxie. Please just kill me."

"And let you off that easily? I don't think so," she snickered, nudging him with her elbow.

"_Besides,"_ she continued telepathically so only he would hear, _"I need you around later to test out what this connection can _really_ do. We've got a lot of lost time to make up for."_

She sent him a few images she cooked up in her mind and took a sadistic pleasure in how badly the boy blushed in front of everyone.

DA-DA-DA

EPILOGUE:

After a small celebration in honor of everything they had achieved together over the past few days, the group disbanded and went their separate ways.

Lydecker went back underground but promised to keep in touch, Mia returned home to be with Dougie, and Sam reopened his doors the very next day to resume business now that his exam rooms were vacant again.

Max and Alec returned to Jam Pony, learning to work together for a change, and it wasn't long till the very perceptive OC called them out as being a couple. Normal was disappointed at first, but he cheered up a bit after the third round of shots at Crash, courtesy of Sketchy.

Bradbury decided he wanted nothing to do with Manticore anymore and would instead open a research center of his own. As he drove away to start the next chapter in his life, he shot occasional glances down at the specimen container sitting in the passenger seat.

While he could no longer justify experimenting on living beings simply for the sake of following orders, the scientist in him wouldn't allow him to walk away from a perfectly viable sample to study after it fell so easily into his lap.

Who knew? Maybe gene splicing would be his next big career move…

THE END

A/N: There you have it, folks! This story is officially complete! Hope you've enjoyed the ride, and thank you all for your unwavering support and reviews. Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!


End file.
